Auribus Teneo Lupum
by Strange-Charms
Summary: "There comes a day when the lost heir returns, when a great power is divided, enemies lives become united—when one falls, as does the other..." When Izuku set out for the capitol, the last thing he was expecting was to be pulled into a ideological war. Much less one where the lines between myth and reality blur and somehow he was stuck in the middle. ( Fantasy!AU )
1. Chapter 1

**AURIBUS TENEO LUPUM**

" _Holding a wolf by the ears"_

 _Used to describe an unsustainable situation, and in particular one in which both doing nothing and doing something to resolve it are equally risky._

* * *

 **A/N:** Hello, hello! I know it's been forever and a half since my last story, but I was inspired to write again by my love for My Hero Academia (been growing ever since I started reading the manga towards the beginning of 2016 and kicked into high-gear by the amazing anime adaption).

I'll have you know that my idea for this story was jump-started by a prompt by **Astridalen** over on tumblr. ^^

( _You might recognize the specific one later in the story, hint hint_ )

From there, I literally wrote out the entire plot and have 9 pages of planning to show for it! Phew! But at least I have a game plan moving forward. :D

This is _completely un-betaed_ by the way, so I hope that there aren't too many errors. ; v; Just a forewarning.

Anyway, that's enough of my rambling for now. Hope you enjoy the first chapter!

 **Rated T:** for violence and language (a la Bakugou)

 **Pairings:** None, but plenty of fluff.

(Because my fics are self-indulgent as all get out)

 **DISCLAIMER:** I DO NOT own My Hero Academia, just my own words.

* * *

 _There comes a day when the lost heir returns,_

 _when a great power is divided,_

 _enemies' lives become united—_

 _when one falls, as does the other—_

 _for such a power_

 _pitted against itself_

 _leads to ruin._

* * *

"Ow!"

The exclamation pierced through the quiet of the midafternoon air. Izuku Midoriya found himself wincing as he sucked at the cut on his finger, glaring betrayed at the hawthorn plant that he'd been attempting to harvest berries from.

The teen gave an irritated huff as he examined the cut, deeming it shallow enough to continue his task, but still in need of a bandage to prevent infection. Grumbling to himself he rummaged through his leather satchel, retrieving a strip of bandages and an herbal salve his mom has given him just for occasions such as these, where his clumsiness got him hurt in one way or another. Unfortunately, that was more often than the boy really wanted to admit, but c'est la vie.

Smearing the salve over the cut and deftly wrapping a bandage his finger, Izuku turned back to the hawthorn bush resolutely. As much as he really didn't want to continue messing around with the prickly plant, his mother had asked specifically for more hawthorn, as their stores were running low. As annoying a plant as it was to harvest from, hawthorn was too useful and versatile to just brush over, much to his chagrin. The leaves, berries, and flowers all could be used for medicine and treat ailments from chest pain to indigestion, and, most commonly, stomach pain. Thus, hawthorn was the base for most of the Midoriya's potions and medicine and as such, ran out far quicker than other herbs, like yarrow.

Bracing himself, the teen pulled his right glove back on and continued his hunt, plucking the brightest and largest berries, then placing them in the woven basket he brings for his errands.

As the only male in his household, after his father had left when he was a baby, Izuku carried the responsibility for making sure he and his mom had what was needed to keep the business going. Their potions and medicines were rather popular in the towns near the two's cottage, most everyone having traded for them at some point or another for various ailments, from hay fever to injuries from a mishandled farm tool. Their livelihood depended on their potions, so the boy considered it a necessary evil to forage for herbs in the forest surrounding the area as often as he could manage, even with the dangers of the local wildlife or the occasional bandit.

While the current king, known to his people as All Might (a name spoken in hushed whispers and reverent tones) had greatly reduced the overall crime rate in the kingdom—often known to go on rides throughout the kingdom himself and take down evildoers that had even the best of his guard hesitating—there was only so much one man could do. Not to mention that as the king aged, he began to go out less and less, meaning that criminals had gotten bolder. No one was quite sure why he was unable to patrol as much as he used to, but most chalked it up to the pitfalls of old age and left it at that.

 _But still, how could someone who had seemed so unstoppable and tireless suddenly…drop like that?_

The teen frowned at the thought.

Even though crime rates tended to be higher in the bigger cities and towns, such as the capitol, even his rural community had been seeing a spike in crime. As a result, his mother had insisted that he carry a dagger with him at all times. Luckily for him, he hadn't really had much reason to use it as of late, but the thought that he one day might was unsettling.

Still, he supposed, it was better than remaining unarmed and vulnerable.

Izuku paused in his work to examine the sizeable pile of herbs in his basket. Bright red hawthorn berries, lush hawthorn leaves, some yarrow, thyme, sage…

"Hm, I think that's everything…" The teen muttered to himself, setting the basket down for a moment to look around the area, then examine the contents of his satchel to ensure he hadn't accidently dropped anything.

His notebook peeked up at him from his bag, nestled against a few empty potion vials and his handkerchief that his mother had embroidered for him for a birthday gift a few years ago. He rooted through the bag a bit more, before deciding that yes, he hadn't forgotten anything.

"Guess I'm done for the day!" The teen cracked a smile and stretched for a moment, glad to be able to retire for the evening. The sun was only just beginning to dip below the horizon, dying the treetops a fiery orange and sending dappled light through the natural pavilion to warm the Izuku's face.

Letting the smile drop from his face, Izuku picked up his basket and began carefully making his way through the undergrowth back towards the trail. Thorny branches and hidden brambles would be quick to latch onto him if he didn't pay attention, so he kept one emerald eye trained on the terrain as he went.

A flash of brown caught the boy's gaze as he pushed past the last of the precarious foliage and Izuku gave a soft sigh of relief at the sight of the well-worn trail.

 _Thank god… I'd really rather not get lost this late in the day._

Humming a song his mother used to sing to him as a child, the teen swiftly made his way back to the small cottage he and his mother called home.

"Mom! I'm home!" Izuku called through the door, a smile edging at his lips when he immediately hears a thud and then hurried steps rushing towards the front of the house.

The worn door is yanked open to his mother's flustered, but grinning face as she smoothest down her apron with her hands.

If anyone else was looking at the scene, the resemblance between the two was nearly uncanny. Izuku easily had his mother's eyes and hair color. If not for his own freckles and his mother's crow's feet and larger figure, inherent to her age, one could easily mistake them for twins, the two standing at approximately the same height—Izuku maybe having an inch or two over her.

"Welcome back Izuku! Dinner is almost ready, if you'd like to freshen up first." The green-haired woman's eyes trailed to the basket clutched in his gloved palm before lighting up and shooting back up to the young man's face.

"Ah, you have the hawthorn I asked for! Thank goodness, we were just about out! And that would've been typical, wouldn't it? Running out of one of the most important ingredients right before the Akarui Festival! It's one of the most important trading events of the year—"

Izuku just watched his mother ramble on, listening with half an ear as he was hit with the mouthwatering scent wafting from the kitchen. His stomach growled loudly, cutting through his mother's rambling like a warm knife through butter.

Izuku immediately flushed, warmth flooding his face up to the tips of his ears.

Inko blinked, then gasped.

"Oh Izuku! I'm so sorry—I went rabbiting off again! You should've stopped me! You know I wouldn't mind." She exclaimed, reaching out to grab the basket from the teen's hand. She backed away from the doorway and ushered Izuku inside hurriedly.

"C'mon, c'mon! We don't want the stew getting cold now. Go on and wash up and I'll get the plates ready."

Izuku obediently came inside at his mother's insistence, sliding off his boots in the doorway. He turned around, looking after his mom as she rushed towards the kitchen.

"You sure you don't want any help?" He inquired.

Inko glanced back at him, her expression melting into a fond smile before shaking her head.

"No sweetheart, I can manage. You do more than enough around here, please let me take care of at least this much."

Izuku nodded affirmatively, flashing a sliver of a grin in her direction before trudging up the stairs to his bedroom. Pushing his door open, the boy was met with the sight of his room dyed a myriad of blue and purple hues, courtesy of the rapidly-approaching evening. Fumbling about, he managed to find a candle and match and lit the wick, before placing it on his nightstand.

The flickering light, while small, managed to illuminate the room's meager offerings. A sturdy bed with a slightly moth-eaten quilt was pushed against one wall, directly beside the window. To the left of the bed, Izuku could make out his desk, made of sturdy cedar wood and worn from years of constant use. Papers spilled over the edges of the desk, a few decorating the floor beside his desk chair and dotting his woven rug—a mottled collection of scarlet, gold, and royal blue, the national colors of Yuuei. A tapestry of the same colors adorned the wall next to his door, depicting a victorious All Might with his signature grin.

The pail acting as his trash bin beside the desk was overflowing with papers and a few cracked potion bottles, from nights spent coming up with new ideas for medicines, as well as—embarrassingly enough—his observations and theories about the source of the king's seemingly otherworldly power. He always came back to magic as the ultimate answer and while magic certainly existed, it was super rare that there was a large enough output from a single individual that such force could be exerted.

Most people held a trace of magic within them from birth, but few were able to really utilize it and of those that could, it generally took direct magical lineage and craft in order to have true control or impact. Witches and wizards were capable of magic, yes, but they had magic in their family for generations and spent their _entire lives_ getting it under control. An example of this was his friend, Uraraka, who had been born with enough magical energy to enchant objects. She frequently bought potions from the Midoriya's as a base that she'd then enchant to achieve a certain effect for her family's store, which specialized in magical wares. As for herself, she had made an enchanted staff that amplified her magic power so that she could affect more than one object or person at a time, a favorite prank of hers being to make people levitate randomly as a prank—one he'd been on the receiving end of one too many times for his taste throughout the years they'd grown up together. Nonetheless, it wasn't malicious by any means, so Izuku supposed he could deal with it.

Other than that, the only other true magical beings were magical creatures themselves, such as dragons—though those hadn't been seen for ages and no one was really sure if they even existed in the first place at this point.

Izuku shook his head and determinedly swept aside his thoughts for the time being, shoving them back into a tiny compartment in his brain for further analysis. As it stood, he had spent enough time lost in thought and just the thought of dinner had his stomach screeching at him to get a move on.

Removing the dagger from his belt and tossing it onto his bed, alongside his satchel, the green-haired teen rushed to the wash bin located on his dresser. He ran his hands through the water with a dollop of homemade lavender soap, then wiped them off with a small hand towel. With that task done, Izuku booked it back down the stairs, more than ready to eat and relax for the evening.

* * *

"Izuku," his mother started, just as the teen polished off the last of his stew, spoon scraping the bowl.

Izuku lifted his head and met his mother's matching emerald gaze.

"Yes, mom?"

Seeing that she had his attention, his mother visibly brightened.

"As I'm sure you know, the annual festival will be starting in a week up in the capitol. We'll need to work really hard these next few days to get all the medicines and such done on time. Do you think you can handle helping me out alongside all your other chores?" Inko questioned, a worried frown slowly spreading across her face.

"I know that it's a lot…well, has been a lot ever since…since your father left really…" She trailed off, glancing back up at her son from where her eyes had drifted to the window at the mention of the absent Midoriya.

As she always tended to whenever Hisashi was mentioned.

Inwardly, a little seed of resentment curled in Izuku's gut at the mention of his absentee father. Not really because he missed him per se, he had never known him for goodness sake! But…seeing how…sad…it made his mother always left a bad taste in his mouth. He knew, _god, he knew_ that hatred wasn't exactly the most constructive way to deal with the issue, but how else was he supposed to respond? To an enemy he can't find nor fight, even if he wanted to.

Pasting a smile on his face to hide his rapidly declining mood, Izuku nodded.  
"No, no mom, it's fine. I can handle it! The capitol is about a three day journey on foot, give or take, so as long as we finish up everything by the middle of the week, it won't be a problem! Don't worry about me, mom."

His mom put a hand to her cheek, her gaze softening.  
"Oh Izuku…how can I do anything but worry about my only son? It's practically my job!" She laughed, a small smile worming its way back onto her face.

Izuku felt the tips of his ears warming at her motherly teasing, mind immediately flashing back to all the times he had come home in the past nursing a dislocated shoulder from when he had tried helping a wounded deer on the way home and it turned out the buck _did not_ want his help, thankyouverymuch. Or when he hadn't watched where he was going and ending up with scratches up and down his arms and legs from an involuntary tumble down a hill…or that one time with the tree— _NOPE, WE'RE STOPPING THAT SPIRAL RIGHT NOW_.

Still, at her smile, he felt his own become a lot more genuine.

" _Mooommmm_ —I'm 17! I'm too old for you to worry about me. My job is to provide for you!" He protested.

She just laughed at his expense, only flustering him further.

"You'll always be my little boy, sweetie." Her tone softened and became just slightly more serious. "You're still far too young to be shouldering all that responsibility on your own. Please allow your dear old mother to handle her own part of the burden. You know our lives don't rest upon your shoulders alone dear."

At that, Izuku's eyes darted to the floor, suddenly uncomfortable with where the conversation was going.

"I know, I know mom…but…" Izuku sighed, eyes flickered from his mom's face to the window, guilt welling up. The feeling sat heavy and hot in his gut, roiling like a stormy sea.

The years hadn't been kind to his mother. Raising him alone was no easy feat, with modest trading opportunities and no one to help ease the burden. The youthful face and slim figure he remembered from his childhood had worn away, leaving a wrinkled brow and plump physique in its place. World-weary emeralds rarely sparkled as they used to, instead dulled by the struggle of keeping both herself and Izuku afloat when he was too young to do much more than hand her glass bottles while she worked.

As soon as Izuku was old enough to walk without stumbling, he had insisted that he go out to gather the necessary herbs for their potions, but his mother, fearful of the predators lurking in the woods, had refused. Instead, she had him sweep the floors and begin to learn the way of medicine-making. Which ingredients best kept a wound from becoming infected, which combination best combats fever, how to properly stitch a wound shut before treating it…his mother taught him everything she knew and more.

On the days where her foraging and hard work had left her asleep at her work bench, Izuku would drag a blanket from his mother's room on the ground floor and drape it over her, before heading to the kitchen to make dinner. They needed to eat and he decided that until he was old enough to do more, he would do whatever he could to help out.

With time, it became routine. While his mother worked, he'd march determinedly to the kitchen and begin preparing dinner after tending to the fire and sweeping the wood floors. He learned how to maximize his ingredients, using odd combinations of odds and ends to make something satisfying, even if their modest income couldn't afford a constant supply of meat. He became resourceful and over the years, began to take on more and more of the household chores—from concocting the potions himself, to figuring out new combinations for new effects, to foraging, and finally, to travelling to neighboring villages to trade. As of this year, he was finally experienced enough for his mother to concede to Izuku's plea to make the trip to the capitol by himself for the annual festival.

The Akarui festival was the biggest event of the year, a celebration of King All Might's victory over the villains who had ravaged the land in the past, as well as a toast to the nation's growing prosperity. People travelled from all corners of the kingdom to partake in the festivities—whether as simple attendees or, as was the case with the Midoriya's, to sell their wares. It was the single most profitable event of the year, so it was always imperative that the Midoriya's attend, not only to make sure they would have the funds to keep the business going, but also to survive through another year. There was only so much medicine villages needed at a time and while the Midoriya's were well-known for their medicine, village doctors could make their own—even if it wasn't so quick-acting or effective.

 _Not only that_ , he mused. But he only had so much time in a day. Between taking care of general household maintenance, gathering and buying the ingredients for their herbal remedies, and then actually making them, he was only able to travel for trade once a week, give or take. Even with his mother taking up the more domestic tasks, such as cooking and cleaning, again as he grew more skilled in their craft, his time was still very limited.

And Izuku knew that his mother felt exceedingly guilty about it—always pushing herself harder and harder for their family and trying so, _so_ very hard to do as much as she could to ease the burden to her only son as he had for her as a child. He knew that she felt that she was limiting him, her constant prodding to go out and explore the world, make a name for himself, she "knew he could do it" and "he was too smart to stay cooped up in a little cottage out in the woods."

But he couldn't do that to her. Couldn't rip away the one supporting structure she had in the world. He was the only one there to comfort her when she became swamped in thoughts of what she had lost when his father left, the only one who could chop away at old logs for fire wood when the winters dragged on, long and cold, the only one capable of making the long trading trips in the summer when the heat sapped all the strength from your bones and the sweat from your brow. She had always been there for him, always worrying over his well-being, cautioning him about his overly giving nature (she had been that way herself, always giving and giving and giving—until she ended up alone in her little cottage in the woods with a crying baby and no idea what to do)…how could he not do the same for her?

This was an on-going argument—one of the very few the two had ever had—and they were never going to see eye-to-eye on it.

Suddenly feeling very drained, Izuku ran a freckled hand over his face. Looking up at his worried mother, he cracked rueful grin. He really wasn't up to arguing with her tonight about his "hero complex," so he decided to skirt the issue for the time being.

By completely ignoring it and hope she doesn't call him out on it.

"I know, mom. I get it, I will try my best to pace myself, okay? But what you said is right—the festival starts soon and we need to put all of our focus on getting prepared."

He stood from the table, picking up his bowl and then collecting his mother's before she had the chance to get up (an effort that earned him an exasperated, half-hearted glare, but she didn't say anything so he counted it as a win) and walked to the kitchen to deposit them in the wash basin acting as their sink.

Just as Izuku reached for the soap, his mother appeared at his side with the speed of an avenging archangel to swat his hands away, quickly grabbing the dish cloth herself. He backed up a few steps in surprise, blinking at her, but she only smiled sweetly in his direction before waving a hand dismissively.

"Now, now don't give me that look sweetheart! You've had a long day. Go ahead, bathe and get ready for bed. As you said, we have a lot of preparations to do and tomorrow starts early! Let your dear old mom take care of the dishes, okay?"

Izuku opened his mouth to protest, but at her expectant stare, he let his mouth close with a click before turning to leave the kitchen.

 _Dear All Might, her mom stare is a power all on its own._

* * *

Izuku woke up to the gentle caress of the spring breeze through his hair and sunshine in his face. The air held the promise of summer, the just slightly heady scent of flowers beginning to waft up from the small garden behind the Midoriya's cottage.

His eyes cracked open and the teen let out a contented sigh as he stretched, sitting up in bed and allowing his comforter to pool around his waist. His emerald green gaze turned to look at the open window blearily before slowly snapping into focus, taking in the pristine blue sky and the small cotton candy slips of clouds splattered across it.

"Mmf- guess I forgot to close that last night." He mumbled aloud to himself.

Deciding that it was well past time for him to get up, Izuku reluctantly stumbled out of bed and grabbed his white long-sleeved shirt from the bed post where he had thrown it in his haste the night prior.

Three days had went by in a blur, with Izuku and his mother working tirelessly into the night to get their preparations done for the younger's trip to the capitol. Potions were brewed, herbs were dried and then crushed into powder and mixed for medicine, and Izuku made sure to stock the wood pile in the backyard with a sizeable stack of logs for the fire, since he'd be unable to do it while away. His satchel had been packed with rations meant to last him a good three or four days, as well as extraneous bandages and the like in case he accidently banged himself up again. A water skin had been filled to the brim with fresh water and been tucked away with his compass into the bag in addition to a general map of the area.

His mother had seen to it that their wares be kept in a separate case, a strong leather bound bag with multiple compartments to store the various vials and glass jars. He had been given a few small vials containing various powders meant to help him if in a pinch—one containing a sort of sleep powder made from poppies and the other a foul-smelling substance that stuck stubbornly to whatever it landed on.

The last one especially got a laugh out of him, teasing his mother than he was sure that whatever bandit got hit with a "stink bomb" would be running in fear which earned him a pout and a brief scolding.

The caps had been fashioned to hook onto his belt alongside his dagger, for easy access should the need arise for him to use them.

 _Mom had really thought of everything, hadn't she?_ He thought to himself with a small smile, shrugging on his shirt and padding over to his dresser to grab his signature green vest and belt. He quickly changed into his trousers, switching the soft cotton of his sleeping shorts for a hardier cotton blend. He looped the belt around his waist and buttoned up his vest, finishing the look with his pair of white gloves.

A soft inhale brought with it the scent of freshly baked bread and Izuku hastened to the wash basin to check his reflection for any disarray before dashing down the stairs, taking them two at a time.

"Good morning mom!" the teen greeted, plopping down at the table where his place had already been set with a steaming bowl of porridge, topped with a sprinkling of brown sugar and what appeared to be pieces of dried fruit.

"Good morning Izuku." His mother returned, poking her head out from the kitchen, a small smudge of flour on one cheek and a beaming smile across both.

Amused, Izuku pointed to his left cheek and gave her a teasing grin,

"Looks like you got a little something..."

Izuku watched as his mom quirked her brow questioningly before raising a hand to her own cheek, her fingers quickly becoming white as well.

"Oh silly me! Guess I got a little carried away," she laughed, grabbing the edge of her apron to dab at the offending smear.

"Anyway," she continued. "The bread is almost ready. I know you love fresh bread, so I made sure to make extra for you to carry on your trip."

Izuku felt his eyes well up with grateful tears—a habit he had never managed to break, though not for lack of trying—and he let a watery smile grow across his face. A warmth settled and grew in his breast, something fuzzy like the baby bunny he had once gotten to hold after saving a family of rabbits from a trap, but also soothing, like the warm milk and honey his mother had made for him as a child to help with nightmares.

"T-thanks mom, I really appreciate it." He sniffled, wiping at his eyes with one hand. "You always think of me."

She smiled softly at the green-haired teen, leaving the doorway to the kitchen to cross the room to the table where Izuku sat.

"Of course I do! You're my son." She said fondly. "I wanted you to have a bit of home with you on your trip. I know you've been to the capitol before, but never by yourself like this. It was the least I could do to help with the transition. My, it seems like only yesterday you were small enough to hide behind my skirts…but here you are, ready to take on the world." Her smile seemed to crack a little at the edges with her last statement, a mix of fear for his safety and love swirling behind evergreen orbs.

"Oh mom…" Izuku started, a hand reaching out hesitantly and suddenly uncaring of the small rivers dribbling down his freckled cheeks.

"I just—I'm just really going to miss you Izuku. I know it's only a few days, but…but it feels like it's the start of something. Something…bigger than you or I. And I can't help but be frightened of it." She forces out, hands reaching out to grasp Izuku's outstretched one, then leaning down to pull him into a tearful embrace. The teen hung half-in and half-out of his chair, porridge forgotten as he did his best to console his mother, quickly latching onto her shirt and allowing himself a moment to feel like a little kid again.

"Mom…mom, please don't worry. It—it's only going to be a few days. We've been there before, nothing's going to happen." He gently pulls back and out of the embrace, just far enough to be able to lock his green gaze with her own.

"I'm going to miss you too. But I know how to defend myself and we need the money from the event to last another year. Not only that, but there are plenty of people out there whose lives will get better because of our medicine! We can't possibly keep it from those that need it just because of a bit of the unknown." He finishes, smiling crookedly at her and hoping that his reassurance will be enough.

He keeps his gaze steady with her own as she slowly begins to compose herself, allowing her hands to slip free of their previous vice grip on his shoulders and wipe the tear tracks from her face.

"When did you become so mature?" She sighs, finally. "Always so brave and heroic and always thinking of others…"

She shakes her head fondly.

"But you're absolutely right." She smiles resolutely at him. "Don't allow my silly worries to keep you from making the world a better place sweetheart. Just promise me you'll be careful."

"Of course mom." Izuku agrees readily, wiping away his own tear tracks and leaving the skin of his cheeks rosy with the effort.

"Good! Now go ahead and eat your porridge."

Inko pauses a moment, then slaps her hands to her cheeks.

"Oh my goodness-! I forgot about the bread!" She exclaims, spinning around and rushing back to the kitchen, Izuku's guffawing laughter echoing after her.

* * *

"Okay. And you have your dagger?"

"Yes mom." Izuku replies, both exasperated and amused, the feeling coating the syllables like an especially thick glob of honey.

An hour later found the Midoriya's double-checking that the younger had everything at the door, the sun high in the sky and a pleasant warmth to the air that was absolutely buzzing with energy. Izuku could feel the call of nature singing through his veins, the thrill of new life and the calling of adventure filling him with anticipation.

"Alright, alright dear. Then that should be everything. You have a safe trip now, you hear? I will be looking forward to your return." Inko says, an apprehensive crease in her brow, but a brave smile on her face.

After their tearful heart-to-heart at breakfast, the elder of the two Midoriya's had resolved to trust her son to look after himself and Izuku had promised her that he'd do his best.

"And I will be looking forward to coming home." The green-haired boy responds. "I'll be sure to bring you something back from the festival!"

"You know you don't have to do that honey," the woman laughs, but doesn't protest (because she knows there's no way he'd listen anyway).

"I know! But I want to!" Izuku replies, a sunny smile on his face.

"Alright, alright. But nothing too expensive!" His mom concedes before making a shooing motion with her hands. "Now go on! You'll want to get to the Ochako's shop before sundown."

"Of course!" Izuku calls over his shoulder, already heading towards the dirt trail that lead to the main pathway through the forest. He set his eyes forward determinedly and with a grin on his face.

His journey had begun!

* * *

 **A/N:** _Aaaannnddddd_ end!

I know this was a bit of a slow chapter, but it was needed to better establish the world, as well as (hopefully) give a clear picture of Izuku and his mother's bond. Their relationship and his mother's general involvement in his life is one of the things I really appreciate about Horikoshi's manga and I didn't want to gloss over such an important bond for both of the characters.

Never fear though! We have a bunch of new characters slated to be in the next chapter, so hopefully that'll be something to look forward to!

As for the general updating schedule for the fic, I have a general game plan for how I want to space out the fic and what plot elements will be included and when, but it'll just come down to writing them. I hope to get a few chapters written in advance to the release of Chapter 2 in order to not keep everyone waiting too long for the next update, but we will just have to see how that goes.

Thanks for tuning in everyone! Reviews give me life and encourage me to keep writing, so feel free to drop me a message if you have the time!

Til next time,

~ Strange-Charms


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Hi everyone! Guess who's back and didn't wimp out on writing my first true multi-chapter fic?

Seriously though, thank you guys for your support! I honestly didn't expect to get much of a response when I first decided to share this story, but you guys sure proved me wrong! It really makes me happy to see that there are those interested to see where this goes, so I hope that you all will also enjoy this installment as well!

For brevity's sake, I will be replying to your review in the end note, so I look forward to seeing you there!

Onward!

 **Rated T:** for violence and language (a la Bakugou)

 **Pairings:** None, but plenty of fluff.

 **DISCLAIMER:** I DO NOT own My Hero Academia, just my own words.

* * *

All in all, it had taken Izuku two hours, by his approximation, to make it to the next village over. The sun had risen to its peak height in the sky, sending its golden rays down to saturate the forested landscape with its light.

Upon emerging from the well-worn trail that connected the Midoriya's isolated cottage to the rural village of Lytton, Izuku quickly found himself dangling in the air. He flailed his legs and cried out in surprise, feeling suddenly like one of the baby rabbits he had freed from rope traps in the past. He was all for fair game, people needed to eat after all, but to leave a baby animal to that fate just seemed too…cruel for him to leave alone.

Either way, he quickly realized the source of his predicament when a bell-like laugh echoed ahead of him and he suddenly floated forward a few feet to lock eyes with the chocolate irises of one Ochako Uraraka.

"Oh my god Uraraka, _really_?" Izuku blurted, his freckled nose crinkled in displeasure.

To his chagrin, she only continued to giggle, her staff clutched in one hand and the ruby red orb implanted in its center swirled with energy. The pink hood covering her chestnut locks protected her face and eyes from the unrelenting brightness of the midday sun, as well as matched the natural rosy hue of her cheeks.

Unlike Izuku, who boasted a healthy tan from his many days spent foraging in the woods and travelling the area, Uraraka's skin was more akin to a porcelain doll. This was due mainly to her more stationary lifestyle and work in her family's shop, which required her to spend most of the time indoors, creating magical brews or enchanting various objects. Her love for sweets also played a big role, being that she also liked to spend much of her free time either baking on her own, or volunteering to help out the baker's son, Satou.

At that, Izuku noticed that the girl had a paper bag of cookies clutched in her unoccupied hand, leaving her to look even more mischievous, if not a bit awkward.

"Why of course Deku-kun! How else would I greet one my absolute _best_ friends?" Uraraka teases, reaching up to poke at his cheek with her staff and getting a scowl for her efforts.

"By greeting me normally and letting me down?" Izuku wheedled, half-hopeful and half-resigned to his fate, intimately familiar with her relentless good-natured teasing.

"Pfft- and how long have you known me for?" Uraraka laughed. "Besides, you're absolutely adorable when you're angry!"

"W-what? No, no I'm not-" Izuku protested, his voice cracking. The teen feels his cheeks flush with mortification.

"Aww—don't be like that Deku-kun! Look at you, with your fluffy green hair and cute widdle freckled cheeks!" Uraraka coos, her smile growing devious at his indignant squeak and deepening blush, face beginning to resemble a strawberry.

Izuku could feel the heat rising in his cheeks and did his best to cool it down, picturing the snow at winter time and frigid rivers and _Uraraka knows that he's easily flustered by compliments damnit she's known him since they were kids_ —

Izuku is saved from imploding with embarrassment by the intervention of the final member of their trio cutting in in a flash of silver and a commanding voice.

"Uraraka! Put Midoriya down immediately! You know that it's improper to make a spectacle in the entrance of town!" Tenya Iida proclaims, each sentence punctuated with a myriad of hand gestures, most of which are directed up at the floating Izuku.

From the green-haired teen's vantage point, hovering slightly above the two, he could make out that the young knight-in-training hadn't worn his full uniform today, instead wearing the protective metal armor for his arms, legs, and torso.

 _Guess that means he's off-duty today…_

"Aw—Iida! But it's tradition! And he hasn't visited us recently!" She looks over at Izuku pointedly with that statement, prompting a sheepish smile from the green-haired teen. "And why are you still calling me Uraraka? I've told you a million times, Ochako is fine! We're _friends_ , you don't have to be formal." She finishes, her cheeks puffed out.

Iida pauses at her statement, one hand still raised in a chopping motion and the sheen of his glasses dazzling. Izuku couldn't help but think that in that moment, Iida looked vaguely like a statue—a very shiny statue, but a statue nonetheless. He could practically hear the gears spinning in his friends head, calculating and computing the best response to Uraraka's blatant indignation over his innate and unwavering propriety and politeness.

Iida jolted out of his inert state rather quickly, hands returning to his sides and back bending in a nearly 90 degree bow.

"I apologize Uraraka-san. It seems to be a habit I am unable to break." Iida declares humbly, looking absolutely repentant for his "blunder."

"Aaaaaa- Iida, Iida no! It's fine! You don't have to apologize!" Uraraka began panicking, her angry act immediately dropping away in favor of reassuring the ever-earnest Iida.

Izuku found himself laughing at the two's antics, hand flying to cover his mouth in an attempt to stifle his chuckles. He couldn't help but feel his chest grow warm, glad for the consistency and stability he could always find in his friends. Uraraka, ever-teasing, bubbly and determined. And Iida—forever earnest, polite, and blunt. Both of them were always reliable, ready to lend a hand at a moment's notice and always happy to see Izuku, even with his visits becoming fewer and more far between as the years went on due to his travelling.

Even with his attempts to quiet himself, Izuku quickly became the center of attention anew, both of his friends turning from their good-natured banter to look up at the teen floating above them.

"Oh my gosh- I'm so sorry Deku-kun! I totally forgot you were still up there!" Uraraka exclaims, cheeks flushing in embarrassment.

Completing forgoing her earlier stubbornness on the issue, Uraraka carefully lowered the freckled boy to the ground and disengaged her spell, the swirling light in her staff's orb fading and turning the stone back to its natural garnet shade.

Upon feeling his feet touch down onto the dirt path, Izuku stretched and took a few test steps to reorient himself. While floating in and of itself wasn't uncomfortable, it did leave him with the slightest feeling of dizziness and wobbliness in his limbs if prolonged. He supposed it had to do with the fact that he was one of the few who hadn't been born with even a shred of magic, which left him especially sensitive to it. Since most people had at least trace amounts of magic, that bit of magic could counteract other magic with varying degrees of success. It was something like oil and water, where the different powers touched there's a resistance—and the flip side was also possible, with extremely similar types of magic being drawn to others of the same type. In fact, if one's magic was identical to another's, then, theoretically, the connection between the two individuals should be especially strong.

 _Of course_ , Izuku amended, _that wasn't something that had happened before_.

Either way, his lack of magic was something that got him into trouble more often than not, since it left him virtually powerless and vulnerable.

Izuku found himself glancing to his left, Iida's familiar frame filling his vision and towering over the smaller teen.

Ironically, it was this vulnerability that led to his friendship with Iida in the first place.

* * *

Izuku had been fourteen at the time, just old enough to be allowed to make his first trip alone to the neighboring village to trade. The Uraraka's had requested that the Midoriya's craft a specific potion made primarily of rosemary, which not only alleviated muscle pain, but also boosted an individual's overall immune system. Their idea was to try enchanting the potion to boost its effects, making a sort of "super medicine" that could accelerate healing for use in dire situations.

Izuku and his mother had agreed, deciding that should the idea be a success, the two families would split any and all proceeds. Izuku, however, had only really been interested in the potential applications of the "super" potion, rattling off various scenarios where such a medicine would be beneficial and how they could potentially make more specific versions to treat assorted ailments. His mother had patiently listened with half an ear as he rambled, smiling appeasingly while brewing the potion and gently snapping him out of his idea-induced haze when it was finished.

The young teen had then been sent off with a satchel filled with vials and a chunk of bread and an apple with instructions to return by nightfall.

The exchange itself with the Uraraka household was very pleasant, with Ochako's friendly chatter and her mother's good-natured coddling filling the time while the head of the household, her father, had poured over the contents of the vials and theorized over the most effective enchantments for the medicine. Izuku weighed in when he could, but kept a respectful distance considering his youth and respect for the man.

Overall, the potion was modified and enchanted courtesy of (arguably the strongest witch of the family) Ochako herself and was deemed a success. The Uraraka's handed over the payment for the potion, as well as a vial of the concoction for Izuku to take home to his mother and sent the boy on his way, with a reminder to "come visit again soon!"

The entire experience had given Izuku a small skip in his step. His first trading venture had been successful and he had helped contribute to something that could potentially help a lot of people!

He couldn't have wiped the small smile off his face if he wanted to.

But, as all good things do, that too quickly came to an end.

In retrospect, Izuku really should've known that the sudden crack of a branch breaking had signaled trouble. But his youth and inexperience dulled his instincts and before he knew it, the freckle-faced boy found himself in a chokehold with a dagger level to his chest.

* * *

" _Scream boy, I dare you. I've killed for less." A rough voiced hissed in Izuku's ear, putrid breath billowing over his face and causing the fourteen-year-old to wrinkle his nose in disgust._

 _Izuku attempted to grab at the arms constricting his throat, legs kicking uselessly in the air. He could feel more so than see that his assailant was much bigger than him, easily at least two heads taller than the scrawny teen if his distance from the ground was any indication. The beefy arms pinning him in place gave the boy the impression that one, this man was well-built and two, the wicked looking dagger in his peripherals would not miss if push came to shove._

 _A garbled whimper escaped the teen's throat against his wishes, but Izuku wouldn't lie to himself and say he wasn't scared in this situation._

 _He was utterly_ _ **terrified**_ _._

" _I see we understand each other then," the brute continued, his grip around the green-haired teen's throat tightening. "Now, how's about you let me take that satchel of yours and we call it square. No need to make this a hassle now, right?"_

 _Frustrated tears had already began to well up in Izuku's eyes, his sense of self-preservation screaming at him to give up the bag without a fight, but his other half, the much bigger one roaring like hell he was giving up the hard-earned money and medicine his mother was counting on!_

 _Mind made up and quickly becoming desperate as spots edged at his vision, Izuku put all he had into the kick to his captor's kneecap._

 _Izuku swore he heard a crack when the hit connected, the thief's grip becoming lax as he roared in agony and giving the teen the opportunity to slip free of the chokehold and snatch up the dropped dagger._

 _Izuku clutched the stolen dagger in a white-knuckled grip, normally tan skin pale in fright, but standing firm a few yards away from the man cursing colorfully while grabbing at his smarting knee._

" _You little shit—" The thief started, quickly rising to his full height and glaring down at the trembling form of the boy before him._

 _Izuku scanned the man, taking in the black mask covering the bottom half of his face, as well as the dark attire and thick cloak. The teen swallowed past the lump in his throat and pointed the dagger at the bandit warily._

" _Y-you're in a protected province, you shouldn't be here. The l-longer you stay here, t-the more l-likely that you'll be caught. I-I-I'm not afraid of you a-and," Izuku sucked in a quick breath through his teeth when his eyes met the fiery coals glaring out at him from a shadow-darkened face. "You're not getting anything from me."_

" _Huh, is that so kid?" The bandit cocked a brow and then eyed the shaking dagger aimed at him. "And who says you've got the guts stop me?"_

 _Izuku opened his mouth to answer, but before he could a flash of silver and a booming voice interrupted him._

" _HE DOESN'T NEED TO, VILE VILLAIN! FOR I, TENYA IIDA, WILL STRIKE YOU DOWN!"_

 _That was all the warning either got before the blur leapt at the bandit and a sword came down like a sledgehammer._

 _Izuku heard the thief let out an expletive as he messily dodged the ambush, the sword managing to score a shallow cut across the chest as the man stumbled back in surprise._

 _The dust kicked up from the sudden attack settled and allowed Izuku a good look at the imposing figure poised protectively in front of the teen. His armor gleamed gold in the last few rays of sunlight peeking over the tree tops, as evening rushed to take the place of day. The knight's face was obscured by his helmet, the visor down and only allowing a pair of flinty eyes to glare out from behind the cover of glasses._

" _A knight, huh?" The bandit scoffed. "And what are you doing so far away from the capitol?"_

 _Izuku watched the armored form straighten, the sheen of his glasses shielding his eyes from sight._

" _I owe you no explanation, villain. Now, if you would go ahead and surrender, this whole matter can be resolved quickly and cleanly." 'Iida' proclaimed, if Izuku remembered correctly._

" _Me? Surrender? You must be out of your goddamned mind!" The bandit growled, reaching behind him to draw a sword from the sheath hidden within the folds of his cloak._

 _Izuku's mouth went dry._

 _Even if I had attempted to take him on, he still would've had the upper hand. The teen realized shakily, trembling anew around the dagger clutched between both hands. If not for this Iida character, I could have easily become another dead body in a ditch._

 _I was stupid for not running away when I had the chance._

 _Izuku bit his lip, teeth tearing at the tender flesh and bringing him back to the present._

 _If nothing else, the least he could do what try not to be a deadweight in this situation. He was no damsel in distress! Even without formal training, there had to be_ _ **something**_ _he could do!_

" _It seems that this matter won't be resolved diplomatically then." Iida observed, shifting his stance and keeping a wary eye on the villain before him. He turned his gaze to Izuku, who jumped at the sudden attention._

" _I must ask you to stay behind me civilian. I will protect you from—"_

 _Izuku's eyes widened as the bandit took advantage of the knight's lapse in attention to leap at his back, sword raised._

" _SIR IIDA, LOOK OUT!" The teen shouted, dropping the dagger and lunging at the unsuspecting knight to shove him out of the way of the incoming blow._

 _The impact sent the two skidding across the ground, Izuku letting out a muffled yelp of pain as the bandit scored a lucky hit to his leg. The tumble left the freckled teen sprawled across the knight, his metal breastplate digging painfully into the smaller's stomach._

" _O-oh gosh, I'm so sorry!" Izuku stammered red-faced, leaping off the taller male and extending a gloved hand to help him up. "Are you okay?"_

 _Iida pushed himself up on his elbows and grasped the offered hand._

" _I am fine. Thank you for your quick reaction, I was foolish to turn my eyes away from the enemy like that." Iida replied, voice stiff but contrite._

" _Aah- of course! No need to thank me!" Izuku exclaimed surprised. "But shouldn't we-"_

 _Izuku cut himself off, gazing over the other male's shoulder and finding the bandit nowhere in sight, the only indication of his presence being kicked up dirt from his assault and the dagger left abandoned in the grassy clearing._

 _Iida turned to see what the teen was looking at as well and let out a curse._

" _That coward!" Iida boomed, obviously irritated with himself for letting the villain get away._

" _Well, to be fair, we couldn't exactly expect him to stick around and wait to be arrested." Izuku offered hesitantly, trying to make the knight feel better._

" _While I appreciate the effort, please do not make excuses for my blunder. Today was not nearly my best showing." Iida sighed, removing his helmet and giving Izuku a small, grateful smile. "I thank you regardless."_

 _Izuku blinked in shock, taking in the young face looking back at him. Dark blue hair, cut neatly framed his face and only highlighted the defined cheekbones. His eyes were dark and intense, but in a way reflecting seriousness rather than any malicious intent._

" _You—you're a lot younger than I thought you were!" Izuku blurted, face going red as a tomato when he realized what he said. He looked at the ground longingly, wishing that the earth would suddenly part and swallow him up._

 _Iida, on his part, only blinked in surprise. Despite his cheeks becoming dusted in a flustered pink, he seemed to take the exclamation in stride._

" _Ah, well…I suppose I could give that impression with my helmet on."_

 _Izuku instantly went for damage control._

" _W-WAIT NO! It's not a bad thing, honest! It's just really rare for someone to become a knight so young and so I j-just assumed—oh god, I'm not making this better am I?" Izuku groaned, face in his hands and cheeks burning._

 _Iida coughed._

" _Well to be fair, I am just a knight-in-training. I am still studying under my brother and working to live up to the family name." Iida replied, hands raised awkwardly. He seemed torn between trying to comfort the mortified teen and rectifying the situation._

" _Wait, wait…Iida…WAIT—DON'T TELL ME YOUR BROTHER IS SIR INGENIUM?!" Izuku shouted, his head jerking up and meeting Iida's startled eyes with his own starry ones._

" _He's known as the fastest knight in the kingdom! He's practically a legend!" Izuku gushed, forgetting his previous embarrassment to fanboy over who he saw as one of the nation's heroes._

 _Iida puffed up like a proud peacock, a broad grin spreading over his face._

" _Yes, that's my brother! I've looked up to him ever since I was young, it's an honor to train under him!" The dark-haired teen proclaimed, hands chopping at the air to emphasize his point. "I aim to surpass him one day and take on the Ingenium name!"_

" _Ah—that's so cool!" Izuku replied, hopping in place with his enthusiasm and immediately wincing in pain, forgetting the shallow wound on his leg in his excitement._

 _Seeing the smaller teen falter, Iida's eyes zeroed in on the gash, taking in the blood staining the teal fabric a foreboding purple._

" _You're injured!" The knight exclaimed, a stern look overtaking his features as he knelt to get a closer look at the cut, large hands delicately moving the torn fabric aside._

" _Oh, yeah. That." Izuku said dismissively. "I guess I wasn't careful enough. Hold on, I think I have something for it."_

" _Have something?" The knight questioned, backing off as Izuku gingerly sat himself down and pulled up his pants leg to get a better look at the wound._

 _It certainly didn't look nice, the gash jagged from the glancing blow and sluggishly oozing blood, but the trained teen could tell that it wasn't terribly deep._

 _Opening up his satchel and rummaging through it for a moment, Izuku grabbed a small rag and his water skin, soaking the fabric and then carefully running the rag over the cut. He gritted his teeth at the sensation, but kept at it until the blood had been cleaned from the cut. Setting the rag aside to be thrown away later, he pulled a jar of lavender and rosemary salve from his satchel, alongside a roll of bandages. He ripped off a glove with his teeth and scooped up a small amount from the jar, rubbing it into the gash and then wrapping the bandages around his leg with a deftness that spoke of years of experience._

 _Flexing a leg experimentally and satisfied with the tightness of the wrapping, Izuku nodded in satisfaction and put away his materials, shoving the soiled rag into an empty side pocket to be disposed of when he returned home._

" _So…you're a healer then?"_

 _Izuku jumped when he heard a contemplative voice cut in from behind him, momentarily forgetting the other teen's presence._

" _Um, well, of sorts. I've been trained in first aid and have some basic knowledge of herbal medicine, but a full-fledged healer? I don't think so." Izuku chuckled nervously, not used to the scrutiny._

 _The dark-haired knight stared at him for a moment, weighing his response before opening his mouth._

" _Regardless, those are very useful skills to have! You should be proud!" Iida declared, glasses flashing as he rose to his feet._

 _Izuku flushed at the praise, but nodded with a small smile and stood up as well, facing the young knight._

" _Now, it's rather dark and you're injured. Please allow me to escort you home—erm, what was your name?" Iida said, looking abashed._

" _O-oh my gosh! I can't believe I forgot to introduce myself!" Izuku screeched, hands flying to cover his face in mortification. "Um, my name is Izuku Midoriya. It's a pleasure to meet you."_

" _Tenya Iida and likewise." Iida extended a hand for a handshake and when Izuku met it, his grip tightened authoritatively and he turned to march down the trail towards the town, dragging the disgruntled teen behind him._

" _Now, onward! To your home!"_

" _B-but Iida! I haven't even told you where I lived!"_

* * *

It was later that Izuku found out Iida lived in the same town as Uraraka, a chance meeting upon a visit to the market had Izuku and his two friends becoming a trio, Iida fitting himself into the group as the ever-polite, nearly parental authoritative figure to the other two.

While the situation had been less than ideal, Izuku couldn't be happier to have met Iida. He was like a brother figure to him and had also jumped at the chance to teach Izuku hand-to-hand as the years went on, turning the scrawny fourteen-year-old into a toned fifteen-year-old by the time he decided Izuku was capable of defending himself should he not be around. The following year, he taught him the basics of sword-fighting, but there was only so much the younger needed to know since he had no sword, only the dagger he had taken from the bandit encounter and he had made his own, having the blade strengthened and engraved with small runes at the local swordsmith.

From that point on, Izuku kept up his own training regime, working to hone his reflexes through occasional sparring matches with the knight-to-be and keeping active through daily jogs and hauling logs to be chopped for firewood.

"—Deku-kun…de…kun…IZUKU!"

Uraraka's shout broke Izuku from his contemplative daze. His previously glossed over eyes snapping into focus and looking into his friends faces.

"Huh?" The green-haired boy questioned intelligently, glancing between the pouting Uraraka and the just slightly concerned Iida, a crease in his brow.

"You didn't hear a word we said, did you?" Uraraka inquired.

"Um…no?" Izuku squeaked, pulling at his collar nervously.

"You're a terrible liar." Iida deadpanned, sighing.

"We were asking you what you were doing in town," Uraraka explained, beginning to walk down the street towards her family's shop, the two boys trailing behind her.

She perked up suddenly, stopping mid-step and whirling around to face them again, thrusting the paper bag clutched in one hand towards Izuku.

"Oh yeah! I got these for you! Satou and I made a huge batch of cookies yesterday and there were plenty of extras!" She smiled sweetly at the visibly flustered teen, who reached a hand out to accept the gift.

"Thank you Uraraka!"

Grasping the bag in his fist, he smiled back and placed the sweets in his satchel.

"Well, I'm actually travelling at the moment." Izuku answered, falling into pace with his friends as the group continued deeper into the village, waving occasionally to the locals that called out greetings as he passed.

"It wouldn't happen to have to do with the leather travel bag you're carrying would it?" Iida inquired, catching sight of the large bag hanging off his shoulder, swinging behind his smaller satchel and thumping against his hip.

"Actually, yeah! I'm going to the capitol for the Akarui Festival! Mom and I worked on a bunch of potions and medicines to sell while I'm there. Hopefully I'll be able to sell enough to put us on track for next year!" Izuku replied optimistically, fist raised in the air determinedly.

"But Deku-kun…where's your mom?" Uraraka said, a worried look on her face. "Are you going by yourself? Do you remember the way?"

Before Izuku could reply, Iida cut in as well, arm chopping to punctuate his points.

"Not only that! But there are a lot of dangers in the woods! Crime rates has been increasing lately, not to mention that the wildlife has grown more active in the summer months! Are you equipped to take on this task?"

Izuku waved off his friends' worries, the trio coming to a stop right in front of the Uraraka family store, magical wares floating in the glass windows lining the front of the establishment.

"Ah- no guys, it's fine! Mom finally decided that I was experienced enough to let me go on my own. I have a map to help me get there." Izuku assured the two. "And Iida, I have my dagger with me, as well as a few tricks up my sleeve, courtesy of mom. I'll be fine."

Despite his attempts to put the two at ease, Uraraka only worried at her lip, glancing at Iida nervously. On Iida's part, he looked exceptionally grave, eyes serious.

"But Deku-kun…Iida's right. We've even been hearing reports that the League of Villains is active again. Iida's family even got a letter from the castle about their increase in activity." Uraraka ventured, brown eyes bright with worry.

"It is true." Iida agreed solemnly. "Tensei has been stationed at the capitol."

At that Izuku frowned, an uncomfortable pit forming in his gut. It sat there hot and heavy, like a coal in a dying fireplace. Not hot enough to flare up again, but its potential to do so a threat in and of itself.

For the king to ask that the kingdoms finest be gathered was no small matter. Not only were he and the royal guard already protecting the capitol and the surrounding villages, but he generally allowed the other knights in the kingdom free reign to protect areas around their hometown. It was one of the many reasons that King All Might was so popular—this method not only ensured that all provinces were protected, but it also kept families together. The Royal Guard was rather large, yes, but that was due to the citizenry. Most volunteered to join the guard, glad and proud to defend their homeland.

While Izuku was sure that there would always be bad apples in the bunch—greed and thirst for power still ran rampant—however, on the whole, joining up with the Royal Guard was considered an honorable and noble thing to do. Being a knight, whether a part of the royal echelon or not, was a hard life. It allowed chances for fame and glory, yes, but that came with the heavy burden. Should a knight fail, a civilian be killed, a lawbreaker successfully completing their crime, it all fell upon their shoulders.

Not to mention that there was the constant knowledge that each fight may be one's last.

Izuku couldn't say that he envied the life Iida and his family had. While he had often been scolded for his "hero complex," and never leaving well enough alone, he hadn't ever really considered becoming a knight. He had his mother to look after and he couldn't place yet another burden on her, not with the struggles they already faced just to make it year-to-year.

Just doing what he could to help others along the way and the freedom that came with his work as a travelling merchant was enough for him.

"I'm sorry Iida," Izuku started apologetically. "It must be hard to suddenly have your brother summoned like that."

Iida shook his head, face solemn but absolute.

"No, there is no need for an apology Midoriya-san. It's actually a great honor for our family to be recognized by the king like that! Tensei is a splendid knight with a lot of experience, I'm sure he will be fine." Iida paused in his speech to turn a worried frown Izuku's way. "But what I _am_ worried about is you. You may be trained, but there's only so much that can do for you alone against criminals as powerful as the league. Not only are you a civilian, but you're also my friend. It would be both horribly callous and irresponsible of me to not worry for your well-being on this venture."

Izuku opened his mouth to protest—he seriously doubted a group as notorious as the league would bother with a magicless merchant like himself—but Uraraka interrupts hurriedly, shooting Iida a look for his bluntness.

"What Iida means to say is that it's not that we doubt you, Deku-kun, you're amazing! But we fear for you. I know this festival is important and all…but perhaps this isn't the best time. I'm positive the king will sort this issue out soon, but until then, it might be best if you stick around the areas you know." Uraraka finished, a pleading look on her face.

Izuku couldn't help but feel a familiar weight in his chest, happy to see how much his friends cared, but unable to appease them. It was much the same struggle he faced every time he looked at his mother before walking out the door every day, her smile always hesitant and masking her constant fear for his well-being.

The world was dangerous and sending him out into it was scary, but at the same time, necessary. If he didn't attend the festival, there was no way he'd be able to make up the revenue that would be lost as a result. Not to mention, their medicine wouldn't get out to all those that truly needed it. He couldn't sacrifice that solely to look after his own safety. Not only was that selfish in his mind, but he would never be able to swallow the guilt. The endless "what-ifs" would never leave him be and he just—he just can't bring himself to do that, not to his mother and not to all those counting on their medicine.

Pasting a reassuring smile on his face to bury his own nervousness, Izuku looked them both in the eyes.

"I really appreciate that you guys care enough to warn me, but really, I'll be fine. There's literally nothing about me that should attract anyone's attention anyway—I'm just another civilian! I've lived in this kingdom my entire life and not once has anything extraordinary happened to me." Izuku faltered slightly under Iida's raised eyebrow at that, mind flashing to the out-of-the-blue bandit encounter, not to mention all the little magical hijinks he had just happened to get in the middle of by accident. " _Anyway_ , I studied under the best knight I know and I believe he's well-equipped me for any 'old thief that might try anything."

Izuku's smile grew as he watched Iida try and fail to not puff up at the praise, a pleased flush on his cheeks as Uraraka sighed at the two of them, a small grin pulling at her lips.

"And our medicine is going to help a lot of people! You wouldn't take that away from me, would you Uraraka?" Izuku wheedled, sending the girl a pitiful look, green eyes wide and soulful.

At that, the witch threw up her hands, giving up on holding back her fond smile and shooting the teen an exasperated look.

"Really Izuku? Pulling the guilt trip _and_ puppy-dog eyes on me?" Uraraka groaned.

The freckled teen grinned cheekily at her, not gracing her question with a reply. He rocked on his heels expectantly, watching as his two friends exchanged glances before seeming to give up on convincing the boy to look after his own well-being for once, _damn you Izuku_ —

"Fine, fine. But at least let me get something for you." Uraraka groused, turning to march into her family's store, her staff's orb swirling with energy in tandem with her own frustration.

Izuku looked at Iida questioningly, but the latter just shrugged at him, obviously just as confused.

Their shared confusion was short-lived as the brown-haired girl bounced back out of the shop, a purple glass bottle clenched in her fist.

Upon reaching the duo, Uraraka extends the bottle to Izuku, who carefully accepts it, looking it over critically.

The bottle was smooth to the touch, no chips or scratches marring the glass. The purple of the container was too dark to get a good look at the concoction inside, but from the random streaks of light slithering through the solution, Izuku could tell that—whatever it was—was obviously enchanted. The bottle wasn't exceptionally hot nor cold to the touch, which left him especially curious because most magical items had a sort of…potency to them that he, as one particularly sensitive to magic due to his lack thereof, could generally determine based on temperature. Hotter objects were especially powerful and destructive, while colder objects were weaker or more defensive in nature. However, this substance was somewhere in the middle.

Izuku looks up at Uraraka, startled to see her looking much older than he would've thought possible with a solemn look on her face. Her sparkling brown eyes were duller, sunken in slightly and bags prominent. Glancing at Iida, he was struck by just how tired he looked as well. The two seemed resigned and Izuku wondered, suddenly uneasy, _just what had the two heard to make them so opposed to his trip_?

"Deku-kun, it's important that you don't use that potion unless strictly necessary." Uraraka starts, plowing on just as Izuku opens his mouth. "This is a version of the 'super' healing potion we made three years ago, however, it is a lot more potent and has a heavier healing spell placed on it. I don't have the power to make it a miracle potion nor a cure-all, but between the healing herbs you and your mother chose and my magic, I was able to magnify their effects. Hopefully it should help you on your journey."

She smiles tiredly at him, Iida nodding beside her.

Izuku's eyes fill up with tears and he does nothing to stop them from cascading down his face as he lurches forward to pull the two into a hug, touched by their concern.

"You guys are literally the best friends a guy could ask for," Izuku sniffled, giving a watery smile when the two instantly reciprocated the hug. Uraraka's grip was warm and soft, something like a warm cookie while Iida's was just the slightest bit stiff, but protective and strong. The armored teen easily towered over the other two, which meant he had to bend down awkwardly to fit his arms around them, but he seemed happy to do so, a small smile on his face.

Izuku closed his eyes and stood still, allowing their near-familial affection to wash over him, content to bask in the warm feeling of adoration bubbling up in his chest.

The freckled teen was completely oblivious to the concerned looks exchanged between the two over his shoulder, their arms tightening briefly around the boy and wishing for all the world that no harm befalls their reckless and self-sacrificing friend.

* * *

After the trio's tearful embrace, Izuku had tucked the potion into his satchel and bade the two farewell, mentioning that he had to continue on as long as possible while it was still day so one) he could read his map and two) he would have the time to set up camp.

Now, thoroughly soaked and shaking with cold, Izuku wondered faintly if daylight should really be his biggest concern as he took in the giant blood-red eye staring down at him.

* * *

 **A/N:** And here we go! Uraraka & Iida enter, look to stage left!

Oooooo- Izukuuuuuu, what have you done now?

I was originally planning to introduce another character as well this chapter, but by the time I had reined in the wonder trio, the chapter was already pretty lengthy so I decided it'd be best to end it here. I honestly really enjoyed expanding on the trio's relationship and beginning to plant little hints towards some future…issues that may just crop up later in the story. (*insert mad cackling*)

Now, to the reviews!

 **Mia:** Thank you so much for your thoughtful review! I definitely understood where you were coming from and changed the summary to something that I felt was a lot more fitting. Thank you for catching that so early! I honestly wasn't too satisfied with the original one myself, so thanks for the swift kick-in-the-pants I needed to go ahead and fix it! I hope you continue to enjoy the story!

 **Hoppy854:** Hi! Thank you for your review, I'm super happy to hear that you're looking forward to seeing where the story is going! As for the 1-A thing…we'll just have to see where that goes, won't we? xD

 **Perceus Jackson Ten:** Aw, thank you very much! I definitely plan to continue and eventually finish this story—even if it takes a while to do so. Thanks for your review!

Honestly, I wanted to wait until I had a lot more chapters done before posting this one, but after just finishing up Chapter 3 (spoiler: it's a bit of a doozy length-wise), I really didn't want to keep you all waiting. ; v;

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I will begin work on additional chapters as soon as possible so I can (hopefully) begin to establish a steady update schedule, but we'll just have to see. Life waits for no one.

Please feel free to drop me a review if you have anything you'd like to say! Each one motivates me to keep writing for you lovely people!

Til next time,

~ Strange-Charms


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Hi all! I know it's been a hot minute since this story has been updated- I'm sorry for the wait! More of an explanation will be given at the end of the chapter (to not keep you up here for too long- I know you probably want to just get to reading).

For brevity's sake, I will be replying to your review in the end note, so I look forward to seeing you there!

Onward!

 **Rated T:** for violence and language (a la Bakugou)

 **Pairings:** None, but plenty of fluff.

 **DISCLAIMER:** I DO NOT own My Hero Academia, just my own words.

* * *

The journey away from Lytton had been pretty smooth, as far as Izuku was concerned. He had taken out his map to guide his way almost as soon as he stepped foot onto the vaguely familiar trail leading away from the village, fully aware of his own weakness when it came to directions.

If he had been somewhere multiple times, he'd be fine and dandy, finding his way easily by using landmarks. However, send him somewhere new and tell him that all he had to do was go "southeast" from such-and-such a point and the next thing he knew it'd turn out that he accidently went straight north instead. There was only so much a compass would do for one if they, say, weren't paying attention to it, instead caught up in their own head.

…Not like that had happened to him or anything.

 _Yeah, totally._

The sun was shining despite the cloud cover and he had yet to stumble upon any wild animals nor somehow hurt himself a la his own clumsiness. Izuku smiled, turning his face to the sky to bask in the warmth and enjoy the spring breeze running through his hair, verdant locks tickling the back of his neck.

 _To think everyone was so worried about me…this isn't so bad._

Of course, as fate would have it, the clouds decided that this moment was prime time to dump what felt like a literal river upon the teen's head.

The sky quickly transformed from the sleepy blue of before, wisps of clouds blurring the image to a splotchy grey, rain falling fast and hard. Each drop hit with a vengeance, soaking through Izuku's map and rendering the ink useless, black lines smudging and running across the paper, making it indiscernible despite Izuku's attempts to salvage it.

"Ah _great_ …" The freckled teen moaned, running a hand through his sopping wet locks, evergreen strands falling into his eyes.

Izuku balled up the ruined map in frustration, releasing a sigh through his nose only to let out a gasp as his lapse in attention caused him to slip on the muddy path and fall face first into a puddle.

Spluttering, the freckled teen shot up from the puddle, wiping at his face vigorously. Mud was smeared on his palms, matching streaks on his cheeks.

" _Oh my god_ —seriously? I just had to open my big fat mouth." Izuku groused, giving up and peeking inside his bags to ensure nothing had broken due to his involuntary tumble.

Despite being a bit damp, everything appeared to be in proper order. Despite all odds, his rations also seemed to have held on, Izuku grateful that his mother had the foresight to wrap them in multiple layers of cloth for storage.

Closing his bag, the teen stood to take stock of his situation, electing to ignore his soaked status for the time being. The first thing he noticed with a frown was that the ruined map was absolutely unsalvageable now, floating in the puddle with pieces already breaking down into sorry strips. He really didn't know what he was expecting, being that above all else, the map was still just paper, but he was still disappointed and the slightest bit miffed at its fragility.

Not to mention he now had no guidance for how to get from wherever he was to the capitol.

"Well, I suppose I'll have to make the best of it." Izuku pondered aloud, continuing forward on the trail aimlessly. "I guess the most important thing to do now would be to find somewhere to wait out the storm—"

His rambling was suddenly cut short by a roar of pain echoing from the woods lining the path.

Izuku froze, hand reaching for his dagger and his head turning ever so slowly to stare out into the tree line. His eyes darted to-and-fro, searching for the source of the distressed cry, but he couldn't make out anything thanks to the torrential downpour.

For a second, the boy considered just continuing on the path—not only did he not know where he was and would only be getting himself more lost by getting off the trail, but whatever made that noise certainly did not sound friendly.

 _But…_

The sound had been so pained. Even now it reverberated in his ears, head replaying the screech on rewind and sending tiny spikes of pain through his chest, as if he himself were also on the receiving end of whatever upset the creature so.

Gritting his teeth, Izuku mentally sent an apology to his loved ones, knowing that if any of them caught wind of what he was about to do, they would kill him.

If whatever that was didn't do that first.

Turning on his heel, the green-haired boy dashed into the trees, rain erasing the imprints of his boots from the trail and leaving no sign he had ever been there at all.

* * *

Izuku dashed through the forest, doing his best to avoid running into low-hanging branches and keeping his pant leg from being caught among the brambles that reached out with greedy hands from the undergrowth.

The rain certainly wasn't making this task easy, obscuring his vision and causing his hair to flop down in front of his eyes, but years of scrambling through bushes and shimmying between trees to get the best herbs served him well and allowed Izuku to traverse the wet terrain with minimal hindrances.

Bursting through the tree line into a small clearing, Izuku paused to pant for breath and whipped his head around frantically, looking for any clue that would lead him to—what he assumed to be—a wounded animal.

"Dammit, I should've seen something by now…" Izuku grumbled under his breath, pushing his hair out of his eyes and squinting through the downpour. "Which way now?"

He paused when his eyes landed upon a red splotch in the grass, a few yards ahead of him.

Creeping forward cautiously, Izuku knelt to pick up what appeared to be a single red scale, cracked and rigid. Bringing the scale closer to his eyes, he took in the garnet red coloration curiously, brow furrowed and glanced up to see a line of broken branches and bent trees heading deeper into the forest.

"What on earth…?" Izuku murmured to himself, pocketing the scale and wandering closer to get a better look.

The damage was extensive, branches scattered along the ground and a few smaller trees felled. Gigantic claw marks decorated the ground, looking almost random as if whatever had been there had been dragging…something along the hastily-made path through the undergrowth. Large pines groaned ominously, pushed about by the wind and rain. Jagged cracks decorated their trunks, threatening to send the trees hurtling to the ground at the slightest provocation.

"Well…can't say that this looks like the safest option…" Izuku muttered, preparing to back away and try an alternate route when a gravelly whine cut through the air.

From the direction of the ravaged path.

"…You've got to be kidding me." Izuku deadpans, eying the trail dubiously. He rubs at the back of his neck awkwardly for a moment, hesitating, before giving in and trudging into the forest.

Izuku picks his way through the damage, keeping a watchful eye on the swaying trees and doing his best not to fall as the trail sloped in a sharp incline. He was beginning to see what appeared to be rather sizeable rocks dotting the trail, a fluttering feeling like static electricity beginning to build up in his veins as he nervously pressed on.

Arriving at a large cave, the entrance dark and ominous, Izuku felt the feeling increase tenfold, his heart racing like a rabbit in his chest. The opening looked suspiciously like a mouth, looming over the lanky teen with stalactites hanging like fangs from the roof of the cave.

He gulped, his mouth dry, but determined to figure out what made that noise from before as well as do what he could to help. His hand subconsciously moved to rest on his dagger when he took a step towards the cave, stopping in his tracks when a gigantic eye snapped open and gleamed out at him.

Izuku's wide green orbs locked onto the glistening red glaring out at him from the darkness, a growl ripping through the air and the creature's pupil slit in suspicion.

" _Dear All Might_ …" The freckled teen breathed as a scaly head easily double the size of his torso emerged from the cave's entrance, staring down at the green-haired boy.

Two curved horns sat atop the creature's brow, ear-like fins flared out majestically and head supported by a thick, serpentine neck. He could see the shadowy outline of what appeared to be wings deeper in the cave, half-raised in alarm. The entirety of the beast was covered in large garnet scales, glistening with moisture courtesy of the rain.

The only word Izuku had to describe the creature before him was "dragon," but—but that was impossible wasn't it?! He had to be imagining this!

The beast lowered its head to the boy standing stock-still before it, head tilted to the side curiously and puffing a breath of hot air in his face.

Or not. There was literally no other explanation. This was actually a bloody dragon, _oh my god_ —

Its eyes, which he had mistaken for a blood red from afar, in actuality were more of a molten orange, intelligence flickering like flames in the depths of its gaze. With its proximity, Izuku also managed to make out a curious scar above the beast's right eye, small and faint but standing out nonetheless. The creature studied the teen, who in turn dared not move, unsure of its motive.

After staring at the boy for a long moment, its eyes flickered to the hand still resting uncertainly at his belt loop. It appeared almost offended, looking pointedly between the boy and the dagger, prompting Izuku to jerkily remove his hand from the hilt, instead wringing them uncertainly.

Distractedly he registered that the rain had stopped, a sun beam peeking through the clouds and seeming to illuminate the magical creature looming over him.

Gathering his courage, Izuku craned his neck to look the beast dead in the eye and squared his shoulders, despite beginning to shake from both his soaked clothing and his own nerves.

"Um, was it you that cried out like that? If y—you're," he cleared his throat, cursing his stutter and plowed on determinedly. "If you're hurt, I can help you. I'm something of a healer."

The dragon narrowed its eyes suspiciously at the teen, as if trying to evaluate his honesty and Izuku did his best to hold the gaze, refusing to back down and wishing desperately that he came across as sincere as he felt. He had helped many injured animals in his time as both a forager and a traveler, from rabbits to deer to even a bear once (he still had the scar on his side from its frantic lashing out, panicked and in pain from the metal trap clamped around its leg, but he had freed it in the end so he supposed it was worth it) and he knew one of the most important things to do was maintain eye contact and stay calm.

Seeming to make up its mind, the dragon shifted forward out of the cave gingerly and extended a foreleg towards the teen, who had backed up to give the gargantuan creature room.

Izuku stared at the dragon anew, in awe of its sheer size. The front half of its body alone allowed the teen to determine that the dragon was at least the size of a decent-sized home in Lytton Village, its scaly legs as thick around as trees and just as strong.

Hesitantly walking closer, Izuku looked over the offered foreleg clinically, immediately pin-pointing the root of the problem. It appeared yet another of those godforsaken metal traps had somehow managed to clamp around the leg, closer to the ground and towards his talons. Though he couldn't figure out how, looking at the thick hide covering the beast, it appeared as though the trap had managed to find the "chink in the armor," as it were and burrow into the soft flesh under the protective scales, a dark crimson staining the area and dripping down the leg in rivulets.

Izuku winced in sympathy, glancing up at the dragon with apologetic eyes.

"Okay big guy, I have good news and bad news," Izuku started, the dragon cocking its head, seemingly confused by his gentle tone.

"Well, the good news is that the problem is definitely solvable. I have to remove the trap and then clean and treat the wound…"

The dragon nodded his head—Izuku decided that it was most likely a "he" at this point and it didn't feel right to keep calling him an "it" in his head—at the teen, as if telling him to go on.

" _Buuuuttttttttttt_ \- the bad news is that it's going to hurt. A lot probably. It's digging in pretty deep there." Izuku finished, sending him a weak smile.

At that, the dragon seemed to puff up proudly, sending what Izuku assumed was the dragon-equivalent of a smile his way, barring his sharp teeth at the human with the edges just barely quirked up.

While jarring, Izuku couldn't help but find the gesture endearing nonetheless, somewhat surprised by the dragon's easy acceptance. He didn't seem to stay wary long, which the teen found odd, but he supposed that the soul-searching stare the intelligent being gave him earlier probably put him on the "unlikely to stab me" list.

Not to mention that it meant he _probably_ wouldn't be bitten in half when trying to help the dragon out, which was always a bonus.

"Okay then…I guess I'll get started." Izuku mumbled, half to himself and half to the dragon towering over him. Taking off his satchel, as well as the bag containing all of his wares for the festival, he set them to the side under an old tree. He'd really rather not break anything by accident.

He turned and approached the dragon's injured foreleg, climbing onto the upper portion of the leg carefully and just managing to reach the trap embedded in its hide. The trap appeared to be old, rust already creeping along the metal of the clamps.

Inwardly, Izuku celebrated, knowing that the rusting would make the trap a lot easier to remove, but also reminded himself to put a heavy-duty antibacterial salve on the wound to prevent infection. Luckily, it seemed that the rusting was centralized on the springs of the trap, not so much the spikes, so there shouldn't be as big of a risk for infection, but he wasn't going to take any chances.

Removing the dagger from his belt and feeling the dragon stiffen beneath his perch, Izuku lifted his eyes to lock with the molten orbs of the creature looking down at him. From up close, it was easy to see the shifting shades of his eyes, a blood-orange shifting to a lighter mandarin before settling on a honey-gold. The slit pupils from before had made a comeback from their wider state, wary at the appearance of a knife.

"I'm going to use my dagger to pry this thing off you. Hopefully the age of this contraption should work against it and allow me to break it, but I can't do with my bare hands." Izuku states calmly, sitting still and allowing the dragon a moment.

He could tell this guy was much smarter than most people would probably realize, so he felt no need to dumb down his language nor—heaven forbid— _coo_ at him, like he would for a feral cat or especially skittish animals like rabbits.

The dragon seemed to mull it over for about half a second before deciding to stand by his earlier judgement call and gave the teen a brief nod to proceed.

Izuku smiled at him, inwardly thankful for the easy cooperation and returned to his task, shifting his dagger carefully in his hand to wedge it under the rustiest side of the trap. He didn't have to worry about the blade breaking on him, largely thanks to the defensive runes he'd had engraved in it years ago, so his main concern was to make the removal as quick and painless as possible.

Convinced he had the blade wedged firmly in between the jaws of the device, Izuku began pushing down hard on the handle, trying his best to pry the contraption free.

Nothing.

Seeing as it didn't budge, Izuku resolved himself to put his back into it, trying again. He grit his teeth and could feel the lean muscle in his arms straining to break the metal free of the thick hide. Shifting to a crouch and bracing his feet on the muscled leg beneath him, Izuku let out a strangled yell as one of the springs suddenly snapped under the pressure, causing the trap to fly open and release the scaled leg from its vice-grip.

Izuku flailed a moment, his momentum working against him and sending him crashing to the ground. He let out a grunt as his back connected with the ground, sitting up and rubbing at his sore head.

He heard a concerned croon from above him and looked up to see the dragon's face mere inches from his own, pupils round and searching.

Suddenly, inexplicably embarrassed by his grade-A showing of "how clumsy Izuku can be, exhibit 341," Izuku smiled sheepishly at the red behemoth.

"No, no, don't worry about me. I'm fine. I've been told I'm too hard-headed for my own good—this isn't going to slow me down a bit."

The dragon let out a huff of amusement at that, its eyes gleaming and backed off, allowing the green-haired teen to rise to his feet and walk over to where his satchel and medicine bag lay.

Grabbing his satchel decidedly, he chose to use up his own personal store rather than dip into the festival supply. He and his mother had slaved over that medicine and he fully intended for it to be used only if the last available option.

He quickly found and put aside a roll of bandages, as well as a jar of ointment specially formulated to not only help seal up the wound quickly, but also to prevent infection. The treatment heavily focused on the use of aloe Vera, which in its natural state, was not only super effective for burns but was also great for open wounds. The plants properties allowed it to quickly stop bleeding and help rebuild tissue, as well as reduce inflammation. The ointment also included raw honey and comfrey root, which had strong antibacterial properties. Overall, the salve was a lot messier than others and didn't always smell that great, but it was effective and that was the important part in Izuku's eyes.

Rooting through his bag in search of a rag and his water skin to clean the wound as best as he could before treating it, he chattered over his shoulder to the dragon distractedly.

"Okay, so I think I have what I need to properly treat you. The only problem is—well, I'm kinda unsure if I have enough bandages to fit someone your size…okay, the amount of medicine might also be an issue, but I have other stuff too, so I'm sure we can work around it. Oh! I think I found—ack!" Izuku turned and squeaked at the dragon's sudden closeness, having not heard him sneak behind him to look over his shoulder curiously.

"Oh goodness, you can't just do that to me!" Izuku whined, giving the beast a pitiful look which made the dragon blink and cock his head at him.

"You move so quietly! I don't even know how something…your…size…?" Izuku trailed off, staring at the dragon baffled. "Wait, I could've sworn you were bigger?"

Izuku looked intently at the scaly beast who only stared back amusedly, sitting on his haunches and his tail swishing behind him. The dragon had entirely emerged from the cave at this point, his wings tucked at his sides and powerful form on full display. The only difference was that now the dragon looking back at him was no longer the size of a house, instead measuring in size much closer to a horse.

"But how did you…"

Izuku shook his head, deciding that the how was pretty much moot at this point.

 _I mean, up until now I didn't even think dragons still existed. Who am I to question anything this guy does? He's a fricking magical beast of legend—he can do whatever he wants!_

Breaking off his train of thought before he went too far down the rabbit hole, Izuku smiled at the dragon.

"Well, either way, thank you for that."

The dragon tilted his head questioningly.

"I—I mean!" Izuku spluttered, turning red. "I know it's a bit much to assume and all, but you being smaller actually helps me out a whole lot! I mean—I would've tried to help either way, but a smaller size definitely helps when it comes to bandaging a wound and all and I—"

The teen was cut off by the dragon lifting a paw, looking as if he was laughing before giving him a toned down version of the toothy "dragon grin" from before.

Izuku relaxed, taking the response to mean that the dragon got what he was trying to say and turned back to gather up his supplies.

"Alright, um, cool." He finished lamely, settling down at the beast's side and reaching for his foreleg. The dragon moved it over without fuss and waited patiently while Izuku poured the last of the water from his flask onto a clean rag and wiped at the gash delicately, cleaning the area of blood. He then opened up the ointment jar, recoiling from the potent smell of the stuff at almost the same instant the dragon gave an undignified snort, looking at the jar like it insulted him with his snout wrinkled.

Still, the dragon didn't protest when Izuku applied a thick layer of the stuff to the wound and then wrapped it tightly in a bandage, wiping his hands on his pants distractedly when he finished, uncaring of cleanliness with the amount of mud and tree debris caked on them as it stood.

"That should do it then," Izuku commented, gathering up his supplies and placing them back in his satchel, making a note to refill his water skin. He looked down at himself.

 _Okay, and also make sure to clean myself while I'm at it._

Picking up his bags, he readjusted them on his shoulder before turning to look at the dragon with a big grin on his face.

"I'm really glad I could help you—uh, you know what? I don't really have a name for you do I?" He put a hand on his chin, contemplative. "Well, I can't just keep calling you dragon…not only is that rude, but it's honestly kinda tiring…"

He caught a flash of movement in his peripheral vision and Izuku turned his head to watch, astounded, as the dragon suddenly began scratching at the ground. Looking closer, he could see letters begin to take shape in the dirt under the dragon's claw.

"K—I—R—I—S—H—I—M—A." Izuku muttered under his breath, eyes following the dragon's writing intently. "Kirishima…oh, is that your name then? Kirishima?"

The dragon, now dubbed "Kirishima" nodded eagerly, looking pleased with himself and sending Izuku another toothy grin.

"Okay then Kirishima! It's nice to meet you—well, officially. My name's Izuku Midoriya!" Izuku beamed in return, holding out a hand for a handshake before remembering Kirishima's rather scaly status and pulling it back hastily, cheeks pink.

"Erm—well anyway, I am really glad I could do something to um, help you out and all." Izuku said sheepishly.

Izuku turned away from Kirishima, beginning to walk back the way he came.

"As much as I'd really love to stay and all, I really have to get going." Izuku called over his shoulder and looking apologetically at the baffled Kirishima, who had hastily stood up when the teen began his retreat. "I'm kinda lost now because the storm ruined my map, so I need to try and find a village or something to direct me to the capitol. If nothing else, maybe get far enough to find shelter for the night."

The teen's stomach rumbled suddenly, sounding like a poor imitation of a dying whale.

Izuku placed a hand on his stomach, glaring at it in betrayal. He had a good breakfast, dangit! Eating can wait until he has somewhere safe to stay the night!

"And I guess eat as well." He finished, reaching the tree line and beginning to pick his way through the debris. He decided firmly to ignore the pleading whine behind him.

An abrupt tug on the back of his vest stopped him though, yanking the teen back into the clearing. Izuku looked behind him at the dragon, who had his teeth buried in his vest's cotton fabric and was staring up at the teen with molten eyes.

"Um, I'm really sorry Kirishima, but I need to leave. It has to be nearly mid-afternoon at this point and I shouldn't risk getting lost—well, getting more lost," Izuku said, gently trying to pry his vest free.

Kirishima growled at him then, Izuku freezing in shock and the slightest hint of confusion, considering how amiable the dragon had been thus far. Honestly, a miracle in and of itself if the stories he had read as a child were any indication of a dragon's temper. From what the green-haired teen could tell, Kirishima was the exact opposite of everything he knew about dragons, not being hot-headed, greedy, or vicious. Instead, Kirishima, aside from his initial suspicion (which Izuku considered completely understandable, especially when injured), had been pretty friendly overall and stayed calm during treatment despite Izuku _knowing_ that it was painful.

So why was he upset now?

Izuku let go of his vest and lifted a brow questioningly at the dragon, letting his gloved hands hang by his sides.

At the teen's perceived submission, the red dragon released his death grip on the garment and marched around to stand before Izuku, head raised challengingly. His gleaming eyes bored holes into the boy before lowering to the ground as he used his uninjured foreleg to scratch a sloppy "I help" into the dirt.

Izuku examined the phrase in confusion, before looking back up.

"Pardon me Kirishima, but help with what?"

The dragon seemed to snort, rolling his eyes playfully before adding "capitol." After that, Kirishima sat back on his haunches and looked at the boy as if he laid out his plan as clear as crystal.

"Capitol?" Izuku hummed, mind buzzing. "I help…capitol…wait!"

It clicked.

"You mean, you'll help me get to the capitol?!" Izuku exclaimed, looking to Kirishima for confirmation.

The dragon nodded enthusiastically, bouncing up and grinning at the boy.

"Wow—thank you! That would be wonderful!" Izuku shouted, lunging forward to wrap his arms around Kirishima's scaly neck in his exuberance. To be honest, he knew that finding a village nearby was likely a slim to none chance, especially when he wasn't sure where he was. He hadn't exactly marked which direction he came from during his mad dash into the woods earlier and he was originally just going to start walking and hoping he'd get back on the trail eventually. But with Kirishima's help—wait.

Izuku pulled back suddenly, looking at up at Kirishima worriedly. Kirishima's face was awed, eyes wide as he stared down at the boy hanging from his neck. Izuku flushed, jumping back from the dragon as his as if he had been burned.

"I'm so sorry Kirishima! I really should have asked first..." Izuku rubbed at his arm worriedly, his cheeks pink.

Kirishima hurried to reassure the teen, lowering his head to look Izuku in the face and give him a small grin.

At the dragon's reassurance, Izuku smiles softly.

"Ah well, I really do appreciate it Kirishima." He mumbles, looking off to the side awkwardly. He stares for a minute before his eyes go wide and snap back to the dragon so suddenly that Kirishima flinches a little bit, his own eyes a splendid gold and pupils mere pinpricks.

"Ah! Kirishima! If you're going to help me to the capitol, what about your, uh, appearance? I'm kind of unsure how people will take a huge dragon appearing out of nowhere...I mean, no offense, but we haven't exactly been thinking that dragons were...around? I mean—I'm super glad that you're around! …I'm not making this any better am I?" Izuku groans, his hands rising to cover his face again and he hangs his head miserably, only lifting it when he hears Kirishima let out an amused growl, looking for all the world like he is laughing at him, but trying to be discreet for the sake of his dignity.

 _Good grief_ , Izuku thought idly. _I can't even manage to keep my composure around a magical creature..._

Izuku is startled out of his (rapidly self-deprecating) line of thought when he's suddenly nudged by the red dragon playfully. Kirishima is grinning at him in his toothy, dragon-y way again, beginning to trot deeper into the woods, Izuku trailing behind him.

"But seriously though Kirishima," Izuku starts, eyes wide and worried. "What will we do about the capitol? I know we've only been friends for a little while, but I really don't want anything to happen to you on my account."

Izuku paused thoughtfully.

"Though, to be honest, it kinda looks like you already have had an encounter with humans? Considering the trap and all."

Izuku watched as the dragon paused, stiffening, before seeming to shake the question off, instead looking back at the teen with a warm…something swimming behind his orbs, as if telling him not to worry.

To be honest, Izuku wasn't quite sure if he could identify everything the look was trying to convey, but could make out honesty, a bit of affection (to his surprise), and humor, as if he knew something that Izuku didn't.

Which, to be fair, was entirely likely, considering that he was a dragon and all—he could even be hundreds of years old for all Izuku knew. He had never really looked into how dragons aged considering that information either: a) wasn't laying around for any old peasant to read or b) wasn't something Izuku would've looked into, since he didn't know dragons were alive (until now at least).

The teen was tempted to ask Kirishima his age, considering he was able to write answers before and could clearly understand human speech, but he didn't know if it would be considered rude or not. He decided to keep that thought to himself; instead content to go wherever the dragon was leading the hapless traveler.

* * *

Izuku looked around himself in wonder.

Kirishima had led him into a denser part of the forest, far beyond any point the teen would've allowed himself back at home. The trees were becoming taller and growing much closer together, the canopy overhead blocking out most of the sunlight from touching the forest floor and allowing only faint shreds of light to reflect off of the dragon's red scales, illuminating them and causing them to sparkle like rubies.

From Izuku's angle behind the magical being, he could see the various scars marring Kirishima's hide. The sheer amount of them, from small nicks to jagged scars painted the image of him as a warrior. He had obviously been in a lot of tough battles if the larger ones were anything to go by, such as the rather prominent one on the membrane of the dragon's right wing.

 _It's such an old wound…I wonder how he got it._

A sudden thought struck the teen and chilled him to the bone.

 _And at what age?_

He was broken out of his musings by the sudden return of Kirishima to his side, crooning in a worried fashion and appearing somewhat put off by his lingering silence.

"No, it's nothing Kirishima," Izuku reassured the dragon, who pressed himself against the teen when the path narrowed. "I'm fine."

Kirishima looked a bit dubious, obviously seeing through the quick rebuttal to his concern, but didn't push it. He instead shrugged a bit, then nudged Izuku to the left, steering him into a more lush part of the forest, where the air hung heavy and humid.

Izuku gasped when the two broke the through the bushes to see a massive waterfall, perfectly crystalline and blue. The falls were surrounded and nearly sheltered by the trees lining the area, massive weeping willows leaning to cover the area lovingly, boughs swaying in the whispering spring breeze. The rocks below the surface of the pool at the base of the wall of water were easily visible, glimmering in the sun at points where they emerged from the surface like they were attempting to touch the sky. From the two's vantage point at the shore, little fish were darting about in the water, their scales flashing in shades of blue, orange, and green. The mist drifting through the air brushed gently against the green-haired boy's cheeks, blessedly cool and kissing at his freckles reverently.

In that moment, Izuku could almost feel as if he had magic of his own, at peace with the glimpse into the raw, natural beauty of the moment.

"Kirishima, this is amazing!" Izuku whispered, awestruck.

He approached the edge of the pool as if in a daze, peering into the depths curiously.

He had never seen water this clean! Even when foraging for herbs, Izuku had to be careful when refilling his water skin, watching for algae growing in the stream before risking drinking any war from the source.

Izuku's face whipped around to lock eyes with Kirishima who was lingering behind him, sending him a sunny smile that had the dragon ducking his head bashfully.

"This is perfect! I needed to refill my water skin as it was—thank you Kirishima!" Izuku said humbly, his sparkling grin morphing into a soft, grateful smile. He turned his emerald gaze away as he removed the bags from his shoulder and set them down, a safe distance from the water's edge. Izuku opened his satchel to fish out his water skin and took off a glove before unscrewing the cap and dipping his hand into the water to refill it.

Izuku failed to see the sudden impish look on Kirishima's face as he got over his uncharacteristic bout of shyness, creeping forward carefully to loom behind the freckled teen.

He could see the surprise in Izuku's wide eyes in their reflection, but before the boy could so much as yell, Kirishima nudged him forward.

Izuku's arms pin-wheeled comically for a moment before he landed in the water with a splash, spluttering as he popped back up to the surface, his face incredulous.

"Did—did you just push me?!" Izuku exclaimed, shock turning to righteous indignation when he heard Kirishima literally roaring with laughter.

His wet bangs hung in his face messily, forcing Izuku to irritably comb a hand through the curly locks in a useless bid to clear his vision. He only succeeding in looking like an angry, wet kitten to the dragon cackling on the shore, making him laugh harder.

"Ha ha, just laugh it up over there why don't you?" Izuku groused, bobbing at the water's surface with fish flitting by him curiously, like tiny streaks of colored light. The teen began paddling towards the shore, already feeling the water seep into his woolen socks.

A sudden idea struck the teen upon nearing the shoreline and he smiled innocently up at the dragon peering down at him with his head cocked.

Before sending a wave of water flying towards Kirishima's face, nailing him between the eyes.

As you do.

Izuku couldn't help but start giggling hysterically at the stunned look on Kirishima's face, the water dripping off his scales sluggishly. The dragon stood there blinking for a few long moments before letting out a snarl that had the boy squealing and backpedaling in the water as the dragon immediately took up the challenge and literally _launched_ himself into the pool, sending up a huge wall of water in his wake.

Izuku was caught up in the undertow of the wave, being swept unwillingly towards the rambunctious dragon.

"I yield I yield!" The boy laughed, letting out a short shriek when Kirishima playfully batted a clawed paw at him and dunked him under the surface of the pool.

The two took to flailing about like children, splashing each other while laughing giddily. Kirishima used his superior size to his advantage, using his wings and tail to send waves of water Izuku's way, while the teen tried to retaliate with strategic sneak attacks, taking to hiding behind the occasional rock jutting out of the pool and sending controlled splatters to obscure the dragon's vision.

A particularly successful venture had Kirishima snorting, water streaming from his nostrils and causing him to let out a challenging bellow before swooping forward to seize the freckled boy by the vest and fling him a short distance into the air, giving the dragon the opportunity to surge upwards after him, unfurling his impressive wingspan. He took the freckled teen gently between his talons and deposited him on shore, the both of them soaked and still chuckling.

"What was that for Kirishima?" Izuku laughed breathlessly, looking up at the dragon through sopping wet bangs.

Kirishima only snorted at him, before meandering closer and gesturing up at the slivers of sky visible in their hideaway which shone a soft pink, tinged with purple and the ripples of night sky.

Izuku's mouth form a surprised "o."

"It got that late already? Well, in that case, it seems that our best bet for the night would be to set up camp." He commented offhandedly, already beginning to shiver a little from his impromptu dip in the frigid falls.

Kirishima made a humming sound deep in his throat, seeming to agree with him before casually leaning over and licking a long stripe from the bridge of Izuku's freckled nose to his forehead, causing his bangs to stick up stiffly and at awkward angles.

The dragon stared at the teen evenly as he sat stock still for a moment, eyes round and uncomprehending before his nose wrinkled.

"Ewww—" Izuku groaned, lifting a hand to his hair only for it to come away coated in dragon slobber. "Kirishima, why would you do that?"

The dragon didn't give any indication of hearing the question, just letting out something that sounded suspiciously like a purr, before trotting away and disappearing into the tree line a moment, then returning with a mouthful of tree limbs. He carefully deposited his load in front of the teen who lit up with a grateful smile.

"Oh—thank you! That'll work well for a fire." The teen decided to ignore the dragon's behavior for the time being, chalking it up as another oddity that he'd likely never get an answer to. He instead leant forward to grab the branches and haul them further from the shore to a relatively dry area in the clearing.

Setting them down, he began to dig at the loose soil to form a fire pit, Kirishima looking on for a moment before striding forward to help, ignoring his injury despite Izuku's protests.

It didn't take the pair long to hollow out a decent-sized hole, deep enough to not risk starting a forest fire unintentionally. Izuku threw a couple large branches into the fire pit, before ripping up some dry grass and throwing it in as makeshift kindling.

The teen stood to retrieve his satchel from its spot by the little lake to look for his matches, but before he could so much as take a step, Kirishima had opened his maw at let out a small jet of flame, the fire leaping onto the wood with vigor and setting the whole pit ablaze with heat and light.

"You can breathe fire too?!" Izuku gushed, stars in his eyes and nearly vibrating in his excitement. Yet another piece of the stories he had heard as a child coming true before his eyes set the teen ablaze with intrigue. He rushed to his bags, snatching them up to hurriedly return to Kirishima's side, digging through his bag to find a small journal he generally used to record sales and document new herbs. Pushing aside the purple bottle and his now-full water skin, he also grabbed a bit of charcoal he used as a makeshift pen.

Kirishima watched on in fond amusement as the boy began scribbling furiously in the notebook, his entire face tinted gold in the fire's glow and gaze focused as he filled the pages with scribbled words and sketches. The light reflected off the teen's dark curls, water droplets shimmering like tiny diamonds in the strands before slowly evaporating in the face of the fire's warmth.

The dragon pricked his fins as a steady string of half-formed theories began filling the air, snippets of phrases like "magic" and questioning the source of "such raw energy" and "did dragons need a spark to ignite their flames or were they just inherently present?"

Kirishima didn't interrupt his ramblings, instead content to sit and watch for a while, eyes wide as page after page was marked up with his ramblings and observations made over his period around the dragon. The dragon settled down next to the fire contentedly, stretching like a cat and basking in the warmth rolling in waves off the flames.

Izuku glanced up a few times, amused to see what had initially seemed a terrifying force of nature become nothing but a content loaf in front of the fire, head lolling in a light doze as he wrote. Taking the opportunity for what it was worth, Izuku hurriedly noted this behavior as well, fascinated and somehow fond of the magical creature that had decided to not only help him, but maybe even consider him a friend?

He mentally shook his head at the thought. No, maybe friend was too strong a word. While he certainly considered the dragon a friend, he really couldn't be sure of what the dragon thought of the arrangement. It was probably just his own hopes bubbling over and clouding his view of their situation. They had only known each other for approximately a day, for All Might's sake! For all he knew, Kirishima's increasingly tactile behavior may simply be a cultural quirk, maybe a normal part of dragon society—though the teen had to admit that the contact was welcomed. It reminded him a lot of his friends and mom, all three of them huggers (though Iida would never admit it, claiming that a proper knight needed to remain professional at all times, but he couldn't fool Izuku) and regularly patting Izuku on the head, even pinching his freckled cheeks on occasion (to Izuku's dismay).

He knew he still had a bit of a baby face for goodness sake!

He also knew that it frequently caused others to underestimate him, which was a double-edged sword, on one hand it gave him the advantage of surprise, on the other, some people would try to walk all over him. It all depended on the person, really.

Izuku was startled from his reverie when a flash of red in his peripherals caught his attention and his head rose from the journal to watch Kirishima stretch and then walk briskly into the woods, not looking back.

"Kirishima? Wait, where are you going?!" Izuku yelled after the dragon, beginning to rise to his feet before deciding against it.

Regardless of what Kirishima was doing, Izuku leaving the clearing now was certainly not a good idea at night. Not only was he hopelessly lost, but he was still damp and with the rapidly dropping temperatures at night in Yuuei, it wasn't in his best interest to leave the only source of warmth and light he had, now that the sun had set.

Really, he just had to wait and see what the dragon did at this point.

His stomach rumbled again with a vengeance, the sound ripping through the air and reminding the teen that he had forgotten to eat since breakfast.

And eat apparently.

* * *

Izuku had just polished off the last of his impromptu dinner, having retrieved an apple and some of his mother's homemade bread to stave off the worst of his hunger for the night, when a fierce rustling shook the bushes behind the teen.

Izuku froze at the noise before spinning around to watch the undergrowth warily, only to let out a sigh of relief when a familiar scaled head emerged from the foliage. The rest of the dragon quickly followed, wings tucked in carefully at his sides and the spikes on his back cutting through the denser vegetation surrounding his form.

"Kirishima, you scared the crap out of me!" Izuku exclaimed, clutching a hand to his chest and sending the dragon a wobbly smile.

Kirishima made what Izuku assumed was his best attempt at an apology, dipping his head and letting out a short croon before dropping a pile of silver lumps in front of the teen. The dragon sat down and gave the teen an expectant stare when he failed to move immediately.

Taking the hint, Izuku crept forward to look at the offering warily, not sure what to make of the situation. Upon closer inspection, Izuku realized that the lumps were actually fish, rather large ones at that and most likely salmon, if the pattern was a good indication.

"Kirishima…did you catch these?" Izuku questioned, awed.

At the dragon's nod and accompanying grin, Izuku smiled gratefully back at the dragon.

"That was awfully nice of you Kirishima! You do know that you didn't have to do that, right?" The teen said, both thankful for the chance to eat something a little more sustaining than just bread and fruit after the craziness of the day, but also genuinely worried that the dragon was somehow taking his help earlier as a debt to be repaid.

On his part, Kirishima only seemed confused before nodding enthusiastically. He lifted his uninjured foreleg to gesture between the fire, fish, and Izuku pointedly and then sat back on his haunches, looking extremely pleased with himself.

"Alright, alright, I'll get onto that then," Izuku huffed good-naturedly. "But I'll have you know that you're getting some too! Have you even eaten today Kirishima?"

Izuku watched, hands on his hips, as Kirishima's proud look slid of his face to be replaced by one of shock and then tears, appearing extremely moved for some reason.

"Uh, Kirishima?"

The teen had little to know warning when the dragon surged forward to wrap his forelegs around his shoulders in a surprisingly accurate imitation of a hug, squeezing the air out of Izuku's lungs in the process. A sharp wheeze fell from his lips at the pressure and feeling of hard scales digging into his stomach and chest at the contact, eyes wide as he tried to figure out what exactly he had said wrong.

"Ah—um, Kiri-Kirishima, you're—ah—kind of crushing me right now," Izuku gasped out, patting frantically at the dragon's…shoulder? "I'm really s-sorry if I accidentally hit a nerve or something, but air is p-pretty essential right about now!"

The dragon's grip loosened instantly, the dragon pulling back and lowering his head to croon apologetically, the sound reverberating deep in his throat and sending faint vibrations through the teen still in his grasp. Small tear tracks ran in slow lines down Kirishima's face though he was grinning toothily.

Just as Izuku opened his mouth to apologize again, a loud growl erupted from the dragon's stomach and made Kirishima's grin turn sheepish, his fins drooping to lie flat against his head, scales coloring just the slightest hint pink.

"Well," Izuku mused. "I suppose that answers that question. Grilled fish for the both of us then."

* * *

Midnight found Eijirou lying awake, staring into the dying embers of the fire with a full belly and unfocused eyes.

He couldn't remember the last time he had had a properly cooked meal instead of something charred—courtesy of either his brother or his own carelessness.

Fire was harder than it looked to control, okay?

His fins pricked as he heard a soft sigh off to his left, prompting the dragon to lift his head to stare down at Midoriya as he shifted against his side, tilting his head to burrow deeper into the solid warmth beside him. Eijirou smiled down at the small teen, wrapping his tail around his body and shielding the teen from the darkness surrounding the two. The new source of warmth seemed to pacify the human, who relaxed and slipped deeper into his slumber, his body lax against the dragon's scales.

Eijirou's smile softened.

He had taken the liberty to literally wrap himself around the green-haired teen as soon as the two had finished scarfing down the fish he had caught in a nearby mountain stream. Having lived in the area as long as he had, he knew the best places to hunt and had dashed to the closest one to the hidden cove in order to return as soon as possible.

He knew the dangers that lurked in this part of the forest well (he felt his scars twinge at the thought) and wasn't willing to allow his new friend any harm, especially considering how he had helped him out with the bear trap earlier.

Despite Midoriya's initial protests and cherry-red face at the gesture, Eijirou stubbornly refused to move from his post, even going as far as to drag the hard-headed human back by the back of his vest when he managed to worm his way out of his hold. The green-haired boy spluttered at the treatment, seeming both mortified and sufficiently scolded by Eijirou treating him like a disobedient hatchling, even lifting a brow challengingly with a toothy smirk when the teen looked tempted to try again.

After two more (failed) escape attempts, Midoriya seemed to give up and accept his position, still pink in the face and refusing to make eye contact with the amused Eijirou.

His pouting face, while admittedly far cuter than it really should've been for someone so obviously a young adult, didn't make Eijirou budge from his self-appointed duty.

The memory made the dragon snort, eyes drifting back to linger on the odd human once again.

Midoriya's expression was soft and open in his sleep, the round cheeks and smattering of freckles across them like stardust made the teen appear young; almost dangerously so, in Eijirou's opinion.

If not for the medical prowess, wit, and Midoriya's rather manly display of strength earlier when freeing Eijirou (not to mention the chiseled physique the dragon could feel through the soft cotton of the teen's clothing), he'd swear the teen was absolutely defenseless.

Of course, that is obviously not the case.

 _He's strong…but not aggressive_ , Eijirou thought, eying the dagger strapped to Midoriya's belt contemplatively.

Honestly, Eijirou hadn't been sure what to make of the green-haired teen when he suddenly crashed through the underbrush. He had watched, wary and curious as the teen examined the area as if searching for something, rain pouring down and flattening his dark green curls to his head.

The human had obviously been through an ordeal or something, if his appearance was any indication. The green-haired teen was wearing an earthy green vest atop a white, long-sleeved tunic, both soaked through and streaked with mud, sticking to his skin. His pants were actually worse off, looking like he had decided to traipse through a swamp on the way there, the fabric from the knees down having not only noticeable patches of mud, but also various plant debris sticking to it—leaves decorating his boots like a poor attempt at camouflage.

Eijirou had actually felt bad for the guy, he looked pretty miserable out there in the rain, but the thing that really gave him pause was the human's face. His tan skin hadn't been spared from the mud either it seemed, though the amount was trace and did little to cover up the freckles that bloomed across his face like tiny flower buds. There was a small scar decorating one freckled cheek, a thin white line that made the dragon wonder what had happened to cause it. And his _eyes_ —the human's eyes were a dazzling emerald shade that peeked out through the bangs hanging in his face like a veil, sparking with life and a relentless determination.

It was mainly the look in the those green eyes that prompted Eijirou to reveal his location, partly to see how the guy would react and also in a semi-desperate bid to see if someone with smaller hands and more nimble fingers might, _just might_ be able to do something about the bear trap he had foolishly wandered into while hunting.

Really, if he had stayed in his general range, he probably wouldn't even have had to deal with the injury for this long, as his brother would've helped him out—loudly complaining about doing so and cursing at Eijirou for being an idiot, but helping him nonetheless.

Either way, Eijirou watched the human with cautious eyes as he poked his head out from the cave he had hid himself in as a makeshift nest, well aware of his monstrous size as the other stared up at him, gaping.

The teen was obviously wary, tense and standing with a hand on the hilt of his sheathed dagger, but he made no move to attack the dragon before him. Instead he stood still as Eijirou lowered his head to make direct eye contact with the human and matched his gaze, seeming to examine Eijirou in the same intense and vaguely curious way the dragon was him.

Eijirou had to admit he was impressed with the teen's guts. Most people would have either run away or attacked him at this point, but the human did neither. His gaze held nothing but honesty and bravery, and curiously, traces of concern and compassion swirling in the emerald depths like rapids in a river.

And when the teen spoke up to not only ask if Eijirou was okay, if he was the one who had let out the pained cry earlier, but also to offer help with a boldness that came from a sincere need to be there for anyone that needed it, even as he shook under the huge dragon's scrutiny.

 _How. Frickin'. Manly._

Eijirou decided there and then that he liked this guy; that he would not only be a friend worth having, but also someone worth protecting as the teen stammered over his own words with a red face, but steady hands as he forced open the trap and treated his wound.

* * *

The dragon let out a contented sigh as he settled into a more comfortable sleeping position, laying more heavily on his side to reduce the strain on his wrapped foreleg and lifting a careful claw to drag the sleeping teen with him.

Surprisingly, Midoriya didn't so much as make a peep at the movement, but Eijirou was still as quiet as possible as he made sure the human lay against the softer patch of scales towards the dip between his long neck and his shoulder, tail sweeping up to lay across the dragon's snout and consequently better hiding the human from sight.

The cool, night air was still a bit of a concern to Eijirou, who knew that it took Midoriya the better part of two hours to dry off from their mock water battle, so he also lowered a wing protectively to shield the both of them. The leathery hide offered a shelter from the cool winds of night, as well as a potential protection against any rain, should the clouds decide to dump another river on their heads.

Finally satisfied, Eijirou closed his eyes and allowed sleep to creep over him like a soft blanket, enticing in its comfort as it swept him away in a warm embrace.

* * *

 **A/N:** Hey! So, explanation time...basically, life happened. I was intending to get a bunch of chapters done at once to have a steady update schedule, but then all of July was taken up preparing for my transition into college, as well as some family stuff. Fast forward to August and I'm actually moving into a college and trying to get established all on my own since I'm 12 hours away from home.

Not the easiest transition ever, but I'm working on it. It's severely set back both my art and writing schedule, so TBH the next update may take a while. Chapter 4 is planned and a WIP, but a slow WIP. Thank you all so much for the support and kindness despite the wait! I really appreciate it!

Review Time!

 **Mia:** I'm glad that you like the changes! I honestly feel it represents the story better too. And I appreciate your kind words and patience! Haha, don't worry. They will, oh they will...

 **forbidenangel2311:** Why thank you! I'm happy to hear it!

 **bow-and-arrow-lover:** Aw, thank you! I really appreciate that. I actually look up information about the time period, as well as the medicinal herbs in order to try and get some sense of realism (as much as can be expected for BnHA of course). I appreciate your support!

Please feel free to drop me a review if you have anything you'd like to say! Each one motivates me to keep writing for you lovely people!

Til next time,

~ Strange-Charms


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